Cyber experts warn of China, Pakistan intrusions, call for robust measures
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Lucknow: Cyber experts cautioned against increasing intrusions from China and Pakistan and urged Indian authorities to rapidly strengthen digital security infrastructure on the concluding day of the Uttar Pradesh Institute of Forensic Sciences (UPSIFS) seminar on Wednesday.
The final day featured detailed deliberations on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, genome mapping, genealogical databases, forensic justice, ancestry research, forensic applications, and forensic entrepreneurship.
Principal secretary (Maharashtra) Brajesh Singh spoke about how even minor cyber incidents can trigger massive disruptions, citing the Hezbollah pager attack and the malware strike that shut down India's largest port for three months.
He explained that cybercrime cannot be countered by traditional policing and requires international cooperation. Breaking LockBit, for example, took the combined effort of 11 countries, he noted.
Singh called for real-time crisis mapping, chain-of-custody protocols for digital evidence, tracking illicit money flows through blockchain and wallets, seizing criminal infrastructure, and swift victim assistance.
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He also praised the RBI's cyber framework and said that cybersecurity was 'like agriculture, it cannot be imported, it must be cultivated within the country.'
Cyber expert Robbie Abraham, who joined the seminar virtually from Australia, traced the evolution of cyberattacks, from worms like I Love You, which caused losses of USD 8.7 billion, and Conficker, which caused USD 9 billion in losses across 190 countries, to modern ransomware and phishing-based intrusions targeting browsing data, crypto wallets, and confidential information.
Hackers, he said, are increasingly relying on logging and credential theft, selling stolen data on the dark web.
His focus was on preventive measures such as regular security training, use of antivirus, and heightened precautions with emails and messages.
Another cyber expert, Vivek Sood, discussed advanced security management in the global supply chain.
Dr. Madhusudan Reddy Nandineni from the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics in Hyderabad highlighted the importance of next-generation sequencing, rapid DNA analysis, and portable forensic devices.
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