Editor,
All warfare is based on deception – Sun Tzu. It might sound old, but strategic planners have foreseen the importance of waging a geo-economic warfare which has the potential to cripple strong economies, Edward Snowden and Julian Assange were familiar with this type which is why whistleblowers are a rare breed.
In today’s world, information is incredibly important from weather reports, election updates to news flow, we are relentlessly dependent on Google news, Instagram feeds or X, recent indicators have shown that Meghalaya is facing cybercrime issues, 70 per cent of the cases reported are related to financial fraud, but this is likely just a small portion of the overall problem.
Not only are we sharing data on the cloud space, but profiles to money transfers are at our fingertips. Lured by links which might give us a chance to redeem our luck, we ignore the minute details of this mammoth space. Do we hold a strong ground on communications intelligence?
The vulnerable section over here are children and older adults who still have to be sensitised more through informed debate or discussion, hours spent on screens and virtual windows it becomes easy for them to be lured through blackmailing or worst case trafficking.
Definitely the Home Department of the State is deploying countermeasures. Creating a separate department to fuse national security analysts, law enforcement experts, cyber warriors, media professionals would burn the exchequer’s pocket but there has to be an understanding between various stakeholders who have a responsibility to protect not only the 0 and 1 but lives which are on the razor’s edge.
Ashok Kumar and O P Manocha book ‘Cyber Encounters’ do reveal a fresh look into stories of how criminals have reshaped their modus operandi and why it is imperative for us to be practical in balancing our connected world.
Christopher Gatphoh,
Laitkor Rngi, Shillong-10
