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Source- This post is based on the article “Centre exempts CERT-In from purview of RTI Act” published in “The Hindu” on 24 November 2023.
Why in the News?
The Central government in its recent official order has exempted the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) from the ambit of the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
What is CERT-In?
| What is it? | The CERT-In (Computer Emergency Response Team- India) is the national nodal agency for responding to computer security incidents or cyber security threats like hacking and phishing as and when they occur. |
| Established in | CERT-IN was formed in 2004 by the Government of India under Information Technology Act, 2000 Section (70B) |
| Nodal Ministry | Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) |
| Vision | Proactive contribution in securing India’s cyber space. |
| Objective | 1. Preventing cyber attacks against the country’s cyber space. 2. Responding to cyber attacks and minimizing damage and recovery time, reducing ‘national vulnerability to cyber attacks. – It was the first responder to the ransomware attack on November 23, 2022 at AIIMS which had crippled the “Hospital Information System (HIS) and e-Hospital” system for several days. 3. Enhancing security awareness among citizens. |
| Additional responsibility | It has overlapping responsibilities with other agencies such as National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) which is under the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) of Prime Minister’s Office and the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), which is under Ministry of Home Affairs. |
| Cyber Conventions | Budapest Convention on Cybercrime: It is the first international treaty that seeks to address Internet and cybercrime by harmonizing national laws. It came into force in 2004. India is not a signatory to this convention |
| For more information on CERT-In and other cyber programmes click Here to read |
Exemptions for Intelligence and Security Organisations from RTI Act
1. The RTI Act, enacted in 2005, states that the legislation shall not apply to intelligence and security organisations specified in the Second Schedule, “provided that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded.”
2. So far, there are 26 intelligence and security organisations that are exempted from the RTI Act. This includes Intelligence Bureau, Research and Analysis Wing, Defence Research and Development Organisation, etc.
3. The last amendment to the Second Schedule of RTI was made in 2016 to add the Strategic Forces Command to the list of exempted organisations.
What is RTI Act- Benefits and Concerns?
UPSC Syllabus- Security (Basics of Cyber Security)
