Page 8 - It Ministry

Vaishnaw calls for joint global, national efforts for cybersecurity

IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Friday called for coordinated cybersecurity efforts and strategies at global, national and organisational levels to protect cyberspace and societies, as he emphasised the need for shared solutions to tackle the challenges, being compounded by new technologies like AI. The minister exhorted G20 member countries to come together and think through these challenges, share solutions and tools, and "co-operate across boundaries". Citing platforms like UPI, ONDC and CoWIN, the minister said that India with its robust digital public infrastructure has ensured true democratisation of technology for the benefit of its people. "We have seen in many parts of the world, technology has been cornered by a few big-tech companies...is that the right model for a country, democracy or society which is evolving so fast?" Vaishnaw said asserting that India has been clear in its approach on democratising technology to ensure it is inclusive, accessible to all, and not ...

Parliamentary committee to hear RBI, IT ministry on cyber related crimes

A parliamentary committee examining the issue of cyber security and rising incidents of cyber crimes has summoned officials of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Electronics and Information Technology Ministry later this month to seek their views. The panel has already quizzed representatives of several tech majors on the issue. The parliamentary committee on Finance headed by BJP's Jayant Sinha has called RBI and MeitY officials on July 20, the first day of the Monsoon session. On the same day, it also called representatives of Google India separately on the same issue. In its last meeting, the panel had summoned representatives of Punjab National Bank and tech majors Google, Apple and Paytm to hear them on cyber security and rising cases of cyber and white-collar crimes. The issue was at the centre of deliberations at a meeting of the panel held last month too as experts from the industry were quizzed by lawmakers about various facets of unlawful activities, including fraud

Bihar police seek ban on over 100 gambling, gaming and illegal loan apps

Bihar police has approached the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) seeking a ban on more than 100 gambling/gaming and loan lending apps that are allegedly engaged in money laundering and pose a threat to the financial security of the country. The Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar police recently approached MeitY urging it to ban more than 100 such apps, Nayyar Hasnain Khan, Additional Director General (ADG) of EOU (Bihar police) told PTI on Saturday. "The decision was taken after confirming that these apps attract Section 69 of the Information Technology (IT) Act as they contain materials which is prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India. Several complaints had been received of extortion and harassment from people who had borrowed very small amounts through such loan lending apps," Khan said. Section 69A of IT Act empowers the government to restrict access to any online content to protect the interest of sovereignty and integrity of the natio

Karnataka HC imposes a fine of Rs 50 lakh on Twitter for non-compliance

The court has also refused Twitter's request to stay the Centre's orders to block some accounts on its platform with tweets related to coronavirus and farmers' protests

Centre to release draft Digital India Bill for consultation in next 15 days

The bill was due to be released last month but was delayed due to the need for fresh consultations with experts on topics like fact-checking and misinformation

Vendanta Group to leverage startups' tech under pact with Meity-Nasscom

Conglomerate Vendanta Group plans to leverage technologies developed by startups under a partnership with Meity-Nascomm Centre of Excellence, a joint statement said on Monday. Vendanta Group's corporate innovation, accelerator and ventures programme Vedanta Spark has entered into a collaboration with the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) and Nasscom's Centre of Excellence (CoE) - IoT & AI, to accelerate the adoption of digital technologies-led innovations. "Vedanta's engagement with Nasscom CoE will enable innovative startups to demonstrate and develop their product in our unique ecosystem. Vedanta Spark looks forward to bringing in accelerated value delivery across our operations with the key goal being to utilize emerging technology to find solutions that will contribute to long-term environmental, social, and economic sustainability," Priya Agarwal Hebbar, Chairperson, Hindustan Zinc Limited, and Non-Executive Director, Vedanta Limited, said in a ...

IT Ministry, Google announce collaboration to boost online cyber safety

Google will raise awareness on the fundamentals of online safety through the 'Be Internet Awesome' programme, sharing helpful content covering a wide range of online safety topics

Gaming startups form two regulatory bodies; to hold talks with govt

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology will make the final decision on the number of self-regulatory bodies and the composition of their boards of directors

Apple unlikely to apply for subsidies under PLI 2.0 scheme: Report

Apple will continue to focus on making iPhones in India and make Vietnam a hub to make MacBooks

IT hardware players to lose on PLI incentives for failing to meet targets

Under revised scheme, 5% penalty to be deducted from amount due if actual PLI figure for a year is 25-50% lower; if shortfall exceeds 50%, then penalty is 10%

New PLI scheme to attract global cos to India from China: Ashwini Vaishnaw

In a Q&A, the minister of communications says the new scheme for IT hardware also invites Chinese players to set up shop under the scheme if they adhere to its norms

Not PIB, MeitY-led team may scrutinise news items to mark them as fake news

The decision drew harsh criticism from the supporters of free speech in the country

Govt to launch tracking system to block lost, stolen phones from May 17

Telecom network providers will have access to the list of approved IMEI numbers. Using this list, they will be able to check the entry of any unauthorised mobile phones on their network

SCO digital ministers adopt India's proposal to adopt digital public infra

India also shared its plans to invest $3 billion to take mobile connectivity to villages in remote areas and $5 billion to bring broadband connectivity to all 250,000 Gram Panchayats

Govt to spend $1.2 billion on modernising semiconductor lab in Mohali

Action is part of govt's $10 bn Semiconductor Mission of 2021; Centre sees chip market in India growing at 22% CAGR, reaching Rs 9 trillion or 10% of global market by 2030

DoT declines Trai proposal to bring cloud services under its ambit

The decision entails that no new policy or regulations for CSPs will be introduced and the existing framework will continue

No closing dates for PLI scheme, govt makes it easier to avail benefits

Apart from the semiconductor production-linked incentive scheme, the govt is also planning incentive schemes for computers and devices, telecom, automotive, and IT hardware

Govt to send notice to WhatsApp on spam calls: Rajeev Chandrasekhar

The IT Ministry will send a notice to WhatsApp on the issue of spam calls from unknown international numbers, Minister of State for IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Thursday said, asserting that the onus of ensuring user safety lies with the digital platforms. The digital platforms are responsible and accountable for ensuring the safety of 'digital nagriks', the minister said, adding that the government will respond to every instance of alleged misuse or alleged breach of users' privacy. The minister's comments assume significance as WhatsApp users in India have reported a massive surge in incoming international spam calls over the past few days. Many users complained on Twitter that a major chunk of these spam calls had country codes belonging to Indonesia (+62), Vietnam (+84), Malaysia (+60), Kenya (+254) and Ethiopia (+251). Chandrasekhar on Tuesday said the ministry is taking note of the matter and will send a notice to WhatsApp on the issue. "The Ministry is taking note of it, they

Aadhaar authentication rose to 2.31 bn in March 2023: IT Ministry data

The cumulative number of Aadhaar e-KYC transactions so far has gone past 14.7 billion till the end of March 2023

Apple CEO Tim Cook to meet PM Modi, IT minister amid India expansion plans

The visit by Cook to open the first official company-owned outlets in Mumbai and New Delhi this week underscores Apple's growing ambitions for India