'Need to equip ourselves against cyber terrorism, attacks'

Mangalore, Oct 19: œIn today's age, cyber space a world of anonymity and each person affected by cyber crime is a victim due to ignorance, greed or avarice. But, the law cannot regulate human greed or infuse character,  said Vice-Chancellor of National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bangalore Dr R Venkata Rao.

Delivering the key-note address at a training programme on'Cyber Law and Cyber Security' organised by SDM Law College for PG Studies and Research in Law, in collaboration with Advanced Centre for Research, Development, Training and Forensics, NLSIU, Bangalore at SDM Law College here on Sunday, he said that all faucets of criminal justice police, prosecution, judiciary and correctional institutions were manned by people who grappled with cyber crime. Hence, the government has identified institutions of excellence in legal education to disseminate education for novices of cyber crime, he said, adding that as many as 16 institutions had been identified in the country.

He said that the NLSIU had conducted 15 training programmes so far to enhance the knowledge of cyber world to tackle cyber crimes.

In his presidential address, principal and chairman of SDM Law College, Mangalore Dr P D Sebastian said that there was a need to develop and conduct more research to find ways to prevent data from being stolen online. This is an era of technical war where information can be siphoned sitting in a corner of the globe. Hence it is necessary to equip ourselves with latest criminal tendencies, he said.

He said that the concept of cyber terrorism had evolved from cyber technology which could affect banking establishments, confidential information and personal data of individuals. In order to control this, cyber-related laws, policies and regulations should be evolved to prevent cyber attacks, he said.

œIn some serious cases of hacking, it was found that cheap pen-drives originating from neighbouring countries such as Pakistan are used to steal sensitive information stored in the database of the armed forces unknowing to the user and uncover the hidden agenda of the country. The government needs to continuously remain alert against cyber attacks and other dangers of cyber crime. We should be equipped for the growth of technology without giving rise to opportunities for cyber crime to emerge,  he stressed.

Chief investigator of Advanced Centre for Research, Development, Training and Forensics, NLSIU, Bangalore Dr Nagarathna A, senior professor Prof T V Subba Rao, Prof T Vidyashankar, Dr Manjunath V Bhat and others participated in the programme.