IANS | 23 Nov, 2023
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said that while
government institutions, banks and insurance companies were building
greater awareness over cyber fraud, there was a need for people also to
be more alert against cheats who were out to game the system.
Speaking
at the 'DATE with Tech' event in the national capital, Sitharaman said
the government regularly examines public sector banks and the RBI checks
its own systems in order to prevent cyber frauds, in which victims are
tricked via phone or SMS, while insurance firms assess their own systems
as well.
"India is in a transitional stage, we are at a stage
where we are transforming from what was before to what is now, which is
completely digital," Sitharaman added.
She said there is worry on a small scale about people receiving arbitrary calls that trap them and cause them to lose money.
"Those
people who game the system probably are one notch ahead of us in terms
of using and misusing technology. On that, there is a lot of work
required. It is a never-ending game because technology is such an animal
that keeps moving and racing much ahead of you. You have to be sure
that you got the reins in your hand," Sitharaman said.
The Union
Minister said big organisations with systemically sensitive information
should have sufficient technology and staff that are properly educated
to firewall their systems on a daily basis. They also need to
continuously assess whether the firewall is still capable of doing its
job.
She also highlighted India’s achievement in developing a comprehensive digital infrastructure known as the "India Stack".
This
initiative, funded by public resources, integrates various digital
elements, marking a significant leap in the nation's digitiaation
journey which has been appreciated by other countries as well.
Sitharaman
said in the recent G20 Digital Public Infrastructure conference people
were really surprised that a country like India could not only utilise
the talent which is available with public funds and be able to scale it
up at the ground level.