India breaks into top 10 countries on UN’s index measuring commitment to cybersecurity
India’s 10th position, is a marked improvement from the index’s earlier edition released in 2018, when it was ranked on the 47th spot. Notably, there has been a rise in cyber attacks in India since the pandemic began.
The GCI is a trusted reference that measures the commitment of countries to cybersecurity at a global level.
India, along with other countries, was measured along five pillars, namely, legal measures, technical measures, organisational measures, capacity development, and cooperation to generate an overall score. The countries were asked 82 questions where 20 indicators were measured. India's overall score was 97.49.
In the Asia-Pacific region India secured the 4th spot.
Speaking exclusively with The Economic Times, India’s national cyber security co-ordinator (NCSC), Lt General Rajesh Pant gave credit to the substantial rise in the nation’s cybersecurity prowess to teamwork and also two major initiatives under the Prime Minister, namely, Trusted Telecom Directive and National Cyber Security Strategy 2021 that is awaiting a nod from the Cabinet.
Pant added that “this would raise the status of the nation in the international arena”.
India has made a number of efforts to improve its cyber resilience in the past two years, especially by announcing that it is working on its first Cyber Security Strategy.
Speaking to ET close on the heels of the release of the report, top government sources confirmed that India was quizzed on around 100 questions.
One of the questions asked was about India’s cybersecurity strategy and if it is open to any form of consultation with national experts in the cybersecurity domain.
India was also quizzed on protection of children online and Indian laws that help protect children from online abuse.
Apart from that, India answered questions on legal measures for data protection of its citizens and its Computer Emergency Response Teams or CERT that is responsible for coordinating and supporting the response to computer security events or incidents on the national or government level.
India’s NCSC under the PMO was working closely with ITU on addressing the questionnaire, sources said.
Interestingly, neighbours China and Pakistan were ranked at 33 and 79, respectively.
The US was ranked on the first spot, indicating highest commitment to cybersecurity, followed by the UK sharing the second spot with Saudi Arabia, Estonia was ranked third, South Korea, Singapore and Spain shared the fourth spot, Russia, United Arab Emirates and Malaysia shared the fifth spot, Lithuania came in sixth followed by Japan, Canada, France before India.
“Many countries are making progress in their commitments to responding to cybersecurity challenges, despite opportunistic actors taking advantage of our desire for information, our fears about the pandemic, shift to working from home and remote learning, dependence on healthcare systems,” the index states.
While releasing the GCI Index, Doreen Bogdan-Martin, director, Telecommunication Development Bureau of ITU said, “In our post-Covid-19 reality, cyber risk management and resilience matter more than ever.”
The debate over increased focus on cybersecurity has become more pronounced in recent years. On Tuesday, India raised the issue of cybersecurity at the UNSC debate on International Peace and Cyber Security and called on UNSC member states to tackle implications of terrorist exploitation of cyber domain more strategically.
India's foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said, "There's a sophisticated use of cyberspace by terrorists to broaden their propaganda and incite hatred. As a victim of terrorism, India has always emphasised the need for member states to tackle implications of terrorist exploitation of cyber domain more strategically."
Gloss