GoI bans 59 mobile applications

On June 29, 2020, Government of India banned 59 mobile applications that are prejudicial to integrity and sovereignty of India.

Highlights

The Ministry of Information Technology with its power under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act blocked 59 mobile applications. According to the ministry, the applications were involved in activities that are harmful to defence, security, integrity, public order and sovereignty of India. The applications have been compiling data. The data was profiled by elements hostile to national security.

The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre that is operating under Ministry of Home Affairs, has also received complaints to block these malicious mobile applications. Also, the CERT-IN had received complaints on these applications.

Banned application

The banned applications include TikTok, Shareit, UC Browser, Helo, WeChat, etc.

Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre

The I4C was inaugurated in January 2020. The scheme to set up I4C was launched in 2018. I4C deals with 7 components. They include

• National Cyber Crime Threat Analytics Unit
• National Cyber Crime Training Centre
• National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal
• Cyber Crime Ecosystem Management Unit
• National Cyber Crime Research and Innovation Centre
• National Cyber Crime Research and Innovation Centre
• Platform for joint Cyber Crime investigation team.

CERT-IN

CERT-IN stands for Computer Emergency Response Team India. It is a nodal agency that deals with cyber security threats. According to CERT, 34% of cyber threats to India are from China. Most of the applications banned currently are from China.

It was established in 2004. It operates under Ministry of Communication and Information Technology.

Month: Current Affairs - June, 2020