Centre may hire US, Israel firms for terror intel

In an effort to boost the country's cybersecurity mechanism after the Pathankot terror attack, the government is planning to tie up with international cyber surveillance experts.

According to sources, major cybersecurity firms from the United States and Israel have already had several rounds of discussions with different ministries involved -- telecom and information technology ministry and ministry of home affairs.

In the last week of December, Gulshan Rai, national cybersecurity coordinator, met an Israel-based cybersecurity company to this effect.

"The government is keen to tie up with Israel on cybersecurity as they are the leaders in the sector. The plan is to plug the holes in our cybersecurity apparatus," said a senior official from the IT ministry.

With the increased threat of cyber terrorism, the government is also planning to raise its vigil on the internet and monitor any possible communication between terror modules.

The government also wants to ensure that content meant for radicalising youths, from outfits like Islamic State, doesn't find circulation in India.

Sources also said cybersecurity would be one of the main topics of discussion during External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj’s visit to Israel starting January 15.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi would also visit Israel later this year.

The government is planning to recruit, on contractual basis, cybersecurity experts and partner with top international cyber-security firms.

In December 2014, an expert group constituted by the ministry of home affairs had submitted its report on 'Roadmap for Effectively Tackling Cyber Crimes in the Country' after examining the global best practices.

The group comprised of Rai, N Balakrishnan from Indian Institute of Science, Rajat Moona, director general of Center for Development of Advanced Computing, B J Srinath, director general of Indian Computer Emergency Response Team, Manindra Aggarwal, computer science professor at Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur, D Das, professor at Indian Institute of Information Technology-Bangalore, and joint secretary Kumar Alok.

While India has made enormous progress in sectors such as IT and e-commerce, cyber-security in the country is at a nascent stage. Israel, which is the biggest player in the sector after the US, exported $6 billion (about Rs 39,000 crore) worth of cyber-related products in 2014.

According to sources in information technology ministry, India and Israel are working on a mechanism to encourage start-ups from both countries to work on cybersecurity solutions. Discussions are also on to create a fund which could be used to roll out certain projects related to cybersecurity.