Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday said online games such as Blue Whale that dared children to engage in death-defying dare-devilries were the scourge of the digital era.
Accepting the ISO recognition accorded to Kerala Police Cyberdome, Mr. Vijayan said the State was vulnerable to the global menace. He hoped the law enforcement would mitigate such social hazards by harnessing technology.
The government would open Kerala Police Cyberdome facilities in Kochi and Kozhikode to strengthen the law enforcement’s initiative to counter digital threats. Describing Cyberdome as a centre of excellence, he complimented its officers and volunteers for achieving ISO certification.
Against child porn
He said the facility and its pool of software talent, many of them young civic-minded professionals who offered their services free, helped the police keep pace with modern age cybercriminals. Cyberdome volunteers had taken down scores of sites and FB accounts that peddled child pornography. They had worked in tandem with the RBI to detect banking frauds.
Chief Secretary K.M. Abraham revealed that ethical hackers working for the Kerala Police Cyberdome had exposed a vital security vulnerability in the State’s Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS).
He said Manoj Abraham, IG, nodal officer, Cyberdome, had sent him a private note outlining the security chinks in the system that handled large amounts of public funds, including tax remittances. Cyberdome had played a crucial role in protecting the critical information infrastructure of the State.
Mr. Abraham said that as head of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) he had used cybersurveillance and analysis tools to convict a group responsible for market price manipulation.
The racketeers had used mobile phones, computers and the internet to ferret around for insider information and use it to manipulate stocks. Hackers often intrude into critical information networks, lie hidden for a protracted period and siphon off crucial data without triggering an alarm. Cyberdome could address such threats by using tools powered by artificial intelligence.
Mr. Vijayan released a book authored by Sanjay Gurudin, SP, on child safety. State Police Chief Loknath Behera, DGP-Crime Branch A. Hemachandran; ADGP, South Zone, B. Sandhya; and IG Manoj Abraham were present.