Indo-Pak tensions: Sitharaman to chair meet on cyber security readiness of banks, financial institutions

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will preside over a high-level review meeting on Friday (May 9) evening to assess the cyber security preparedness of India’s banks and financial institutions.

This development comes amid concerns that the country’s critical infrastructure could be hit by cyber attacks due to the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan. The government has issued a detailed advisory on cyber security, said reports.

The finance ministry has told public sector banks and key financial institutions to strengthen digital security measures.

Who will attend?

The Friday meeting is expected to bring together officials from the ministry, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the National Payments Corp of India (NPCI), which operates the payments system UPI, NSE, BSE and the leading public sector banks.

Agencies such as the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) and the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) are also expected to attend the meeting.

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The Central government has asked these institutions to remain alert and bolster cyber security measures across core banking systems, payment gateways, real-time gross settlement systems and the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) infrastructure.

May 7 cyber attacks

On May 7, the power ministry, financial institutions including banks and telecom operators were asked to be on “high alert”, after having faced a number of cyberattacks following the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22.

According to a The Indian Express report, an official was quoted as saying that there were some DDoS attacks on some infrastructure but it was contained. They were now on "high alert" because "such attempts will certainly be made", added the report.

Also read: Multiple cyber attacks on Indian websites from Pak reported after Pahalgam

A DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack is a cyberattack where an attacker overwhelms a website, server or network with malicious traffic from multiple sources, making it slow or inaccessible to legitimate users.

India-Pakistan confrontation

The Friday meeting comes as Pakistan launched multiple attacks using drones and other munitions along the western border of India on Thursday night, while shelling areas along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.

This followed India’s May 7 military strike on terrorist hubs in Pakistan to avenge the massacre of over two dozen civilians at Pahalgam by terrorists. The central government believed that these terrorists came from Pakistan.

Plugging loopholes

India’s financial ecosystem, which processes billions of digital transactions daily, is considered a strategic target in such scenarios. Officials said the latest advisory is more urgent.

Also read: In era of 'grey zone', cyber attacks tools to achieve politico-military aims: Rajnath

The focus areas are likely to include patching vulnerabilities, enhancing firewall security, enforcing two-factor authentication and real-time monitoring of any suspicious activity, said media reports.

Key cyber security agencies

The CERT-In, which works under the electronics and IT ministry, is the nodal agency for handling cyber security incidents and strengthening India’s internet ecosystem.