New Delhi: UN telecommunications agency International Telecommunication Union (ITU), released its second Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI).
 
As per ITU’s Global Cyber-Security Index, India ranks 25th out of the 193 countries when it comes to cybersecurity. Singapore tops the charts with the highest level of cyber security commitment in the world.

The US grabs the second spot with higher legal, organizational and growth potential factors than Singapore followed by the US, Malaysia, Oman, Estonia, Mauritius, Australia, Georgia, France and Canada. On the other hand, China comes behind India at 34th position.

These rankings were based on countries’ legal, technical and organizational institutions, their educational and research capabilities and their cooperation in information-sharing networks. 

On the basis of these factors, the index has been topped by Singapore with a 0.925 score while India is ranked 23rd with a score of 0.683 and has been listed in the ‘maturing category’. This category refers to 77 countries that have developed complex commitments to cyber security and engage in cyber security programmes and initiatives.

ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao has said that, Last month, a cyberattack crippled tens of thousands of machines around the world. It is unclear who was behind the attack. “While the impact generated by cyberattacks, such as those carried out as recently as 27 June 2017, may not be eliminated completely, but prevention and mitigation measures to reduce the risks posed by cyber-related threats can and should always be put in place.”

According to the Survey conducted,“Cyber-security is an ecosystem where laws, organizations, skills, cooperation and technical implementation need to be in harmony to be most effective but there is still an evident gap between countries in terms of awareness, understanding, knowledge and finally capacity to deploy the proper strategies, capabilities, and programs.”

The Survey also mentionedthat, about 38 per cent of countries have a published cybersecurity strategy and an additional 12 per cent of governments are in the process of developing the one.

UN telecommunications agency International Telecommunication Union (ITU), urged countries to consider national policies to shield against cybercrime as cybercrime is rising rapidly especially in developing economies like India, who faces unique cybercrime risks.

Poor level of cyber security was believed to be a major threat to the country's dream of a cash-less economy. Instances like the massive security breach of 32 lakh debit cards, just months before demonetization and popular e-wallet in the country called Paytm, who rolled out a smartphone based PoS system to enhance the reachability of the technology, had to rollback the feature the very next day was a strong indication that the country is yet to develop an efficient cyber-security system.

The absence of robust cyber security laws in India is considered a serious issue, which needs to be strategized and implemented soon.