Karnataka - Bangalore

Bid to boost security in banking operations

Staff Reporter

The State police have urged the banking industry to adopt eight-digit alpha-numeric passwords for ATM cards

BANGALORE: To boost security in banking operations, the State Police have urged the banking industry to adopt eight-digit alpha-numeric passwords for ATM cards and install web cameras at major operative centres, Director-General and Inspector-General of Police K.R. Srinivasan has said.

He was speaking to presspersons at the launch of India's third cyber lab, jointly set up by the city police, NASSCOM and Canara Bank, here on Wednesday.

Mr. Srinivasan said that banks were receptive to the idea. Web cameras were a necessity in ATMs where big amounts to the tune of Rs. 10 lakh were withdrawn, he said.

Cyber lab

Such novel ideas would be part of the content to be provided by the cyber lab in its awareness programmes.

Karnataka was the first State to set up a Cyber Crime Cell. A cyber crime police station would be built on the campus of CoD at a cost of Rs 70 lakh, he said.

The Cyber Crime Cell of the State Police had registered 42 cases related to hacking, forceful tampering and pornography under Sections 65, 66 and 67 of the Information Technology Act.

The Bangalore Cyber Lab is the third such facility in the country, the other two being in Mumbai and Thane.

It is expected to train over 1,000 law enforcement officials annually in cyber crime investigation techniques and provide technical support tp ongoing investigations.

Rise in crime

At the launch, Mr. Nandkumar Saravade, director, Cyber Security and Compliance, NASSCOM, said cyber crime was on the rise around the world and while India continued to be among the safest places in respect of a strong security framework. But there was a continuous need to be vigilant, he said.

Canara Bank chairman and Managing Director, M.B.N. Rao, who inaugurated the facility, said that the lab would serve as an important tool to learn about the possible forms of cyber crime and the ways to tackle them.

Set up and managed on a public-private partnership model at the headquarters of the Corps of Detectives (CoD) here, the lab will function as a regional hub and undertake training and support in Bangalore and other cities of the State.

Border districts of neighbouring States will also come under it's purview.

The cyber lab will have a full-time project manager from the police, two instructors and part-time volunteers from the student community.

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