Equipment identity register being set up to keep duplicate SIMs in check

The Indian government has been one of the most proactive and in the past four-five months, several initiatives have been taken to improve cyber security, said Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan

At a time when there are several reports of data loss and cybercrimes, Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan on Thursday said a central equipment identity register was being set up to keep a check on false or duplicate SIM cards and mobiles. The Indian government has been one of the most proactive and in the past four-five months, several initiatives have been taken to improve cyber security, she said.

 

Adding, “A Botnet centres has already been set up, the NCCC is getting operational, the sectoral CERT framework is getting drawn up. In terms of telecom security, we are looking at network security. We are auditing telecom service providers.”

 

The telecom secretary said the global community needed to do more in terms of supporting national governments with more resources and greater collaboration when they have intelligence about cyber crime. She said the openness of internet had a huge potential but it also had its vulnerabilities.

 

Stressing on the need to collaborate with the private sector, she said, “No stakeholder can afford to lax his vigilance as the malign elements are one or two steps ahead of the government or the industry and, therefore, the government has to partner with the industry, the private sector and experts in order to deal with the problems.”