Super cyber intelligence body soon, announces IT Minister

September 15, 2014

It will analyse Internet traffic data, real-time threat assessment

India will soon get an overarching body for cyber intelligence and security, IT and Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said here on Saturday.

The concept note for the Rs. 800-crore project has been sent to various Ministries for inputs. “Once we receive their comments, we will make a note for the Cabinet’s consideration,” Mr. Prasad said.

A year in the works, the National Cyber Security and Coordination Centre (NCSC) will analyse Internet traffic data scanned and integrated from various gateway routers at a centralised location. It will facilitate real-time assessment of cyber-security threats and generate actionable reports for various agencies.

As a multi-agency body under the Department of Electronics and IT, the NCSC will include the National Security Council Secretariat, the Intelligence Bureau, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), the three armed forces and the Department of Telecommunications.

It is expected to subsume the work done by CERT-In as well as issue alerts in the event of a cyber-attack.

Digital IndiaMr. Prasad also mentioned a “game-changer” move to connect 2.5 lakh panchayats to the national optic fibre network over the next three years at a cost of Rs. 21,100 crore. As many as 50,000 panchayats will be linked this year, he said.

Mr. Prasad said the Union government had set up a dedicated cell to process 2.5 lakh “concrete proposals” received under the “MyGov” initiative launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in late July. The initiative aims to enable citizen contribution in governance and invites opinions and views on important issues.

Source:The Hindu

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under About, Government (Govt), Tech

Panels to select places to install more security cameras

July 23, 2014

Coimbatore:City Police Commissioner A.K. Viswanathan said that efforts are under way to make all the 184 closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed at traffic signals across the city, work as intended.

Better surveillance

“Efforts are under way for identifying more places where more CCTV cameras could be installed in the city for better surveillance to reduce crime,” he said.

The CCTV cameras and 23 speed dome cameras were allotted to Coimbatore City police during the World Classical Tamil Conference in 2010.

A police official in the city claimed that only 14 of the 184 cameras were functioning.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Pravesh Kumar said that all these cameras were in working condition. “Only the cables connecting them are faulty,” he added.

A sum of Rs.5 lakh was allotted by the government for maintaining these cameras.

Poor maintenance

But due to poor maintenance, the amount has not been given to the company that has taken up the annual maintenance contract (AMC) to keep the cameras working.

“Due to this reason, the contract was cancelled recently. We are in the process of identifying a new AMC contractor,” police officials said.

“On the other hand, some private companies have come forward to erect such cameras in select places. Committees have been formed under Deputy Commissioners for Law and Order, besides Crime and Traffic, to identify places where the cameras could be installed for better surveillance.

The cameras will be monitored from the police stations in the vicinity,” Mr. Viswanathan added.

Source:The Hindu

Written by ITW Editor · Filed Under About, Andhra Pradesh, CCTV Surveillance

Defenseless toll plazas at the mercy of rough customers

September 27, 2011

They handle many thousands of vehicles and lakhs of rupees every day. But rather than being secure gateways that deter criminals fleeing down highways, toll plazas around the city have shown themselves to be quite helpless in the face of crime over the last few days. A gatekeeper’s murder at the Kherki Daula toll plaza in the early hours of Friday, and a robbery at the Dasna toll plaza the same night have raised questions about security arrangements at not only the turnpikes around the capital but also the highways.

TOI did a spot check of five key toll plazas on Monday and found gaping holes in their arrangements, from inadequate manpower to defunct cameras. Keeping the NCR’s gun culture in mind the plazas’ guards, armed with nothing more than old shotguns, live in dread of troublemakers. “We are completely on our own, so anybody can refuse to pay toll,” an employee at the Delhi-Gurgaon toll plaza said.

Delhi-Gurgaon border

At the KM-24 toll plaza, vehicles from 11 neighbouring villages are allowed free passage, provided their drivers show proof of address. However, many drivers try to muscle their way through on this pretext without showing any document. “Drunken drivers are common here, and some even pull a gun on us if we demand the toll. The three armed guards we have are seldom around. There’s nothing that we can do

in self-defence as the management is unwilling to support us,” a toll employee said on the condition of anonymity. The plaza has 32 dome cameras in side booths and 36 still cameras equipped with night vision in lanes outside the booth, said officials. “PCR vans are present ometimes, but our own patrol vehicles keep circulating through the route,” said Manoj Aggarwal, CEO of DCS, the agency in charge of the toll plaza.

Kherki-Daula

Four days after a toll collector was shot dead by a vehicle owner here, there has been no improvement in security at the toll plaza, said employees. “The staff at the plaza has steadily decreased over time, and the management does not bother to hire again. Sometimes, we have only one line assistant at night whereas we started with around 63. There are supposed to be at least eight on duty at a time,” said an employee.

The 18-lane plaza has 16 dome camera booths, 16 cameras mounted on the canopy and 16 more still cameras with night-vision ability in the lanes outside the booths, said officials.The booth staff is not allowed to carry cellophanes and has to rely on the intercom and a panic button to report any emergency.

A fortnight ago, an employee was allegedly hit by a car when he tried flagging it down for going through the bike lane. “The car went over his foot and carried him along for 100 metres until it hit an auto and he slid off the bonnet. We are scared of doing our duty, fearing for our lives,” said an employee.

Badarpur

Three gunmen, six line assistants and six security guards should be present for every 10 lanes of this 32-booth plaza. However, TOI found a lone gunman on the Delhi side, and none on the Faridabad side. “No gunman has been posted on the Faridabad side for six months,” said an employee. The two line assistants on duty said their walkie-talkies had poor range. “We keep losing the signal,” said one. However, S Raghuraman, project manager, said, “We have panic alarms and intercoms inside the booths so that employees can get in touch with the control room when necessary”.

DND

Security at this toll plaza is slightly better, but the guards complain their 12- bore shotguns are no match for criminals’ sophisticated arms. “We have to reload manually after every shot,” said a guard. DND PRO Niranjani Paharia said, “Since we want toll collectors to have minimum communication with vehicle owners, doors and windows are kept closed at all times with only a space to collect money and give the receipt. The panic button is placed at the feet (of the operators).We also keep having mock drills”.

Dasna

Broken barriers, rundown booths and dysfunctional CCTV cameras mark this toll plaza on NH-24. The barrier arms have remained broken for months, so employees have to manually flag down cars. Many vehicles refuse to stop. “We suffer a loss of around Rs 2 lakh daily. Many of those who stop at the toll plaza claim they are locals, and should not be asked to pay. After the armed robbery, the police have agreed to post two armed officers with a bike at the plaza at night,” said ND Shukla, manager. TOI found the entire staff without safety jackets. Not only were some of the cameras broken, the CCTV feed sometimes did not stream from the server. The booths were without intercom and panic buttons.