India’s computer and emergency response team, CERT-In, published new guidelines which requires service providers, intermediaries, data centers, corporates and government entities to compulsorily report cybersecurity incidents, including data breaches, within six hours.
The government stated that any service provider, intermediary, data center, body corporate and Government organization shall mandatorily enable logs of all their ICT (Information and Communication Technology) systems and maintain them securely for a rolling period of 180 days and the same shall be maintained within the Indian jurisdiction.
According to the latest order, the types of incidents that come under the scope include, inter alia, compromise of critical systems, targeting scanning, unauthorized access to computers and social media accounts, website defacements, malware deployments, identity theft, DDoS attacks, data breaches and leaks, rogue mobile apps, and attacks against servers and network appliances like routers and IoT devices.
The government stated that they are taking these measures to ensure that requisite indicators of compromise (IoC) associated with the security events are readily available at hand to “carry out the analysis, investigation and coordination as per the process of law.” This move will help in fighting cyber crime more effectively.
The directions also instruct concerned organizations to synchronize ICT system clocks to the Network Time Protocol (NTP) Server of the National Informatics Centre (NIC) or National Physical Laboratory (NPL), maintain logs of ICT systems for a rolling period of 180 days, and require VPN service providers to retain information like names, addresses, phone numbers, emails, and IP addresses of subscribers for a minimum of five years.
The rules will take effect after 60 days and it calls for virtual asset service, exchange, and custodian wallet providers to keep records on Know Your Customer (KYC) and financial transactions for a period of five years.
India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) stated that these directions shall enhance overall cyber security posture and ensure safe and trusted Internet in the country.
Image Credits: Bleeping Computer
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