Cyberthreats: Centre sets up secure e-mail network for staff of critical departments

Source- This post is based on the article “Centre sets up secure e-mail for 10,000 users in critical ministries” published in “The Hindu” on 17th December 2023.

Why in the News?

In response to cyber attacks, the Centre has implemented a secure email system for 10,000 users across critical ministries and departments.

How will it work?

1) Designed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC), the email system is based on Zero Trust Authentication (ZTA)
– A zero trust architecture is a security approach that treats all systems, networks, and users as untrusted, necessitating ongoing authentication for devices, users, and applications.

2) It incorporates two-factor authentication system that requires facial recognition or biometrics in addition to passwords.

3) Additionally, it also records log-in and log-out times for enhanced security.

What are the other measures taken by the government to enhance Cyber Security?

1) Digital India Corporation (DIC) invited bids from private players to select cloud service provider to operate, manage and migrate existing projects as well as future projects.

– The DIC is currently working on various national importance projects which run on cloud services provided by Amazon Web Services. For example, Digilocker, Poshan Tracker, MyScheme, Umang, APISetu, NCW, Kisan Sarathi, Academic Bank of Credits etc.

Note- DIC is a not-for-profit company set up by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). It is working towards the mission of Digital India by way of Capacity Building for e-Governance projects, promoting best practices, encouraging Public-Private Partnerships (PPP), nurturing innovation and technology in various domains.

2) The scope of the bid also included migrating the e-mail services of government employees to a private player, currently handled by the NIC.

What is National Informatics Centre (NIC)?

1) Operating under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), it serves as the technology partner for the Government of India.

2) It was established in 1976.

3) Its primary objective is to deliver technology-driven solutions to both Central and State Governments.

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