Tag: meity

Nixi Offering Free .in Domain Names for the First Three Months as Part of Republic Day Celebrations

The National Internet Exchange of India (Nixi) is currently allowing people to register .in domain names for free. This deal is being offered as a part of the Republic Day celebrations that began on Thursday. The .in domain can be used for emails, websites, and other applications. This service currently has around 3 million people onboard. People can also get a .bharat domain name for targeting regional users. There is also an option to pick from over 22 regional Indian languages.

Nixi announced that as part of the 74th Republic Day celebrations, people can register .in domain names for free till January 29. Domains registered during this period will be free for the first three months. In addition, people can opt for a free personalised email ID with 10GB of space. This offer has been introduced to attract people towards the Digital India movement.

In related news, a new mobile operating system named BharOS was introduced recently. It is developed by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras. BharOS is designed to focus on privacy and security. This project is funded by the Indian government for developing a free and open-source operating system.

It aims to reduce the dependency on foreign OS used in smartphones in India. BharOS is said to be a huge leap forward towards creating an indigenous ecosystem and promoting the use of locally developed technology. This OS is currently being provided to organisations with stringent privacy and security requirements. Notably, BharOS does not come with No Default Apps (NDA). Users can allow only trusted apps to access certain features or data on their devices.

BharOS was developed by JandK Operations Private Limited (JandKops), a Section 8 (Not for Profit) Company established by IIT Madras. It is funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, under its National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NMICPS).

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Government to Hold Discussions With Stakeholders on PIB Fact Checks for Social Media in February: MoS IT

Amid outrage over a plan to give powers to its arm PIB to police fake news on social media, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday said that the government will next month hold discussions with stakeholders before the proposal is implemented.

The minister said that the rules for regulating online gaming are expected to be notified by January 31 after which these will be tabled in Parliament.

“We will hold a separate consultation (on PIB fact check) sometime early next month,” Chandrasekhar said when asked about clarification on the proposed amendment to the IT rules 2021.

Chandrasekhar also said that the consultation on the Digital Personal Data Protection Act is over and it is being processed within the realms of the government for notification.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) last week released a modification to the draft Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, which it had previously released for public consultation.

While the consultation is largely going on for framing rules for online gaming, it added a small note in the due diligence section for the removal of content identified as false, fake or misleading by the PIB or any government-authorised agency.

Under the proposed amendment, the due diligence by intermediaries shall include making such efforts to not upload, publish, transmit or share information identified as fake or false by the Fact Check Unit of the Press Information Bureau, which takes cognizance of fake information both suo motu and by way of queries sent by citizens on its portal or through e-mail and WhatsApp and responds with correct information when the same pertains to the government.

The determination of fake news cannot be in the sole hands of the government and will result in the censorship of the press, the Guild said in a statement here, voicing “deep concern” over the draft amendment to the Information Technology (IT) Rules.

An official source, who did not wish to be named, said that the option of fact check by PIB or any other government authorised agency was added in the proposed amendment after discussion with industry.

“Intermediaries, mainly social media companies, asked Meity to provide notified fact check for misinformation. We are entering into a regime where all intermediaries and fact checkers need to have accountability,” the official said.

He said that intermediaries are the ones who have to be regulated and they can’t put in place fact checkers.

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Twitter Plea Against Government’s Takedown Orders Adjourned by Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court has adjourned the hearing of the petition filed by microblogging site Twitter against the Central government’s takedown orders to December 12.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology sought time to present its arguments in the case following which Justice Krishna S Dixit adjourned the case on Wednesday.

Twitter has approached the High Court challenging the several blocking directions issued to it to remove tweets, accounts and URLs on the platform.

The social media platform, in its petition filed in June 2022, claimed that the Centre was required to issue notice to the owners of the Twitter handles against whom blocking orders are issued. The company claimed that it was barred from even informing its account holders about the takedown.

Senior advocates Arvind Datar and Ashok Haranahalli have argued on behalf of Twitter before the High Court in the last two months.

The main argument so far on behalf of Twitter is that the government’s blocking orders are against the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court in the Shreya Singhal case. This was the case in which the Supreme Court struck down Section 66A of the Information Technology Act.

Twitter has argued that those whose accounts are to be taken down should be served a notice beforehand. It has also submitted the list of accounts, tweets and URLs that the government has asked it to remove between February 2, 2021 and February 28, 2022.

The issue is regarding 10 government orders during this period in which the Centre directed the microblogging site to block 1,474 accounts, 175 Tweets, 256 URLs and one hashtag.

Twitter is, however, challenging the orders related to 39 of these URLs. In an earlier hearing, Twitter also submitted a 300-page compilation of how such issues are handled in various countries.

The blocking orders are under Section 69A of the IT Act which provides for blocking of content that is against the interest of sovereignty and integrity of India, pertains to defence of India, security of State, friendly relationship with foreign states, public order and content which provokes or incites commission of any offence.

Twitter has claimed that the orders are not in consonance with Section 69A of the IT Act.

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Supreme Court Asks MeitY if ‘Protocol’ for Internet Shutdown Exists: Report

The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to respond to a plea alleging the arbitrary shutdown of Internet access in various states, as per a report. The apex court has previously ruled in 2020 that an undefined restriction of Internet services is illegal and orders for Internet shutdown must satisfy the tests of necessity and proportionality. State governments regularly shut down Internet access in regions where exams are conducted, with the aim of curbing cheating. 

On Friday, a bench comprising Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit and Justices S Ravindra Bhat and P S Narasimha asked MeitY to respond to a PIL filed by Software Freedom Law Center, according to a report by PTI. The plea has alleged that Internet services have been shut down in states like Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and West Bengal. 

The apex court reportedly asked the Centre for details on whether a protocol exists to deal with the issue, while stating that it was choosing to issue notice to MeitY instead of the states where the Internet shutdowns took place.

Internet shutdowns have been used to curb cheating in examinations held in some states, and advocate Vrinda Grover informed the Supreme Court that petitions were already filed in High Courts in Rajasthan and Calcutta.

The PIL refers to Internet shutdowns in Rajasthan amid recent communal tensions, and in various states in an attempt to prevent cheating during competitive examinations. The advocate also questioned whether proportionality would permit the shutdown of Internet access for this purpose, while adding that a parliamentary committee had said these measures should not be taken to prevent cheating. 

As per the report, the bench stated that the courts could be urged to follow the precedent set in the 2020 Anuradha Bhasin case, in which the apex court ruled that orders for Internet shutdown must satisfy the tests of necessity and proportionality and that an undefined restriction of Internet services is illegal. 

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Apple, Samsung Could Gain From India’s New Parallel Testing Strategy to Speed Up Safety Approvals: Report

India is reportedly planning to test different components of electronic devices simultaneously to speed up their safety approvals. The new strategy is expected to drive the launch plans by smartphone giants such as Apple, Samsung, and Xiaomi. Currently, 16 to 21 weeks are required for the testing and certification of products like wireless earbuds and smartphones. The new method could eliminate five to eight weeks from this. Earbuds could be put through faster testing first and the government is likely to decide on other products later.

As per a report by Reuters, India will try to speed up safety approvals for new electronic devices through parallel testing. The plan to test different components of the devices simultaneously could abort five to eight weeks from the currently required 16 to 21 weeks time period.

According to the report, the pilot decision was taken after a closed-door meeting on Wednesday between officials of the Ministry of Electronics and Information and Technology (MeitY), Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT) and executives of firms like Apple and Samsung.

“For industry, it is directly linked with ease of doing business; for consumers, this will result in faster access to the latest products,” Reuters quotes MAIT as saying in a statement. The Bureau of Indian Standards, “has agreed to a pilot project where some identified electronics hardware products shall be undergoing parallel testing”, it added.

The report citing executives suggests that the testing process can take 16 weeks for a new Apple AirPods model. The procedure could last for an average of up to 21 weeks for smartphones and its parts. Initially, earbuds will be reportedly put through faster testing and the government is said to decide on other products later.

As the Government has clearly laid out a goal of $300 billion electronic products by 2026, the new move could remove bottlenecks faced by businesses in the country.

Xiaomi, Samsung, and Apple, who sell most smartphones in India, are expected to benefit from the move.

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Social Media Should Act in Accordance With Indian Laws, Cannot Contravene the Rights of Citizens: MeitY

The Indian government’s proposal to set up a grievances appellate panel follows several complaints that social media platforms are not adequately redressing the issues raised by the people, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Thursday.

The Minister of State for Electronics and IT held an open house discussion with stakeholders on a draft notification to amend the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.

The government has proposed to set up a grievance panel that will have the power to override the decisions of social media companies and other internet firms.

“While we have laid out a grievance officer and an accountability framework that was missing before February 2021, we have been flooded with people saying that is not enough and not working adequately. Platforms and intermediaries do appoint grievance officers but there is no real redressal of the grievance and there is a need to address that,” Chandrasekhar said.

The social media platforms need to act on complaints that violate Indian laws and cannot contravene the rights of citizens granted under the constitution, he added.

“While we encourage intermediaries from all over the world to make their presence in India felt but their rules and condition of their service cannot, at any point of time, contravene Article 14, 19 and 21 of the constitution in particular and the constitution in general,” the minister said.

Chandrasekhar noted that social media firms cannot discriminate, play with the right to free speech and privacy and rights of citizens ingrained in the constitution.

The minister pulled up an industry body Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) representative for not giving a convincing reason to extend the deadline of July 5 by a month for submission of comment and on concerns around the rise in regulatory cost burden due to the enforcement of the proposed rules.

On the question of whether the government is open to an industry-led voluntary mechanism to handle grievances, the minister responded affirmatively.

He said that the government is ready to accept any alternative that stakeholders offer, which is credible and people get to feel that social media platforms are accountable to them when they raise their concerns.

“The current grievance redressal mechanism is far from being complied with by the platforms that should. Therefore consider this appellate panel as an interim mechanism till the industry steps forward and offers something that is credible,” Chandrasekhar said.

The rules are constantly going to evolve based on feedback from stakeholders, he noted.

“Safety, trust and accountability are very relevant in these rules,” the minister said.

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Government Orders Employees Not to Use Google Drive, Dropbox, VPNs

A new government order restrict employees from using third-party, non-government cloud platforms including Google Drive and Dropbox as well as virtual private network (VPN) services including NordVPN and ExpressVPN. The order passed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) has been circulated to all ministries and departments and all government employees are required to comply with the directive, Gadgets 360 has learnt. The new move by the government comes just weeks after directing VPN service providers and data centre companies to store their user data for up to five years.

Citing an increased number of cyberattacks and threat perception to the government, the 10-page document seen by Gadgets 360 ordered employees to “not upload or save any internal, restricted, confidential government data or files on any non-government cloud service (ex: Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.).” The document is titled “Cyber Security Guidelines for Government Employees.”

In addition to restricting employees from using the popular cloud services, the government instructed employees through its directive to not use any third-party anonymisation services and VPNs, including NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Tor, and proxies. Additionally, it directed the workforce to refrain from using “unauthorised remote administration tools” such as TeamViewer, AnyDesk, and Ammyy Admin, among others.

Government employees are also directed to not use any “external email services for official communication” and conduct “sensitive internal meetings and discussions” using “unauthorised third-party video conferencing or collaboration tools.”

The government additionally ordered employees to not “use any external websites or cloud-based services for converting/ compressing a government document”. It also directed the workforce to not use “any external mobile app-based scanner services” including CamScanner for “scanning internal government documents.

Notably, the government banned CamScanner in 2020 as a part of its initial move to restrict China-based apps in the country. Some government officials were, however, still being seen using the app for scanning physical copies of their official documents.

Alongside restricting the usage of certain apps, the government’s order also directed employees to not ‘jailbreak’ or ‘root’ their mobile phones.

The directive also ordered employees to take measures including the use of complex passwords as well as updating passwords once in 45 days and updating operating system and BIOS firmware with the latest updates and security patches.

“All government employees, including temporary, contractual/ outsourced resources are required to strictly adhere to the guidelines mentioned in this document,” the order said. “Any non-compliance may be acted upon by the respective CISOs/ department heads.”

The order was released on June 10 after a couple of revisions in the original draft made by the NIC. It included inputs from India’s Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) and was approved by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) secretary.

Gadgets 360 has reached out to Google, Dropbox, and other entities to get their comments on the government’s directive. This article will be updated when the companies in question respond.

In late April, the CERT-In issued a directive to make its mandatory for VPN service providers, data centres, virtual private server (VPS) providers, and cloud service providers to keep user data for five years or even longer. The order will come into force from June 28.

As a result of that order, VPN service providers including NordVPN, ExpressVPN, and Surfshark have decided to remove their physical servers in the country as they follow no-log policies and are not technically capable of storing logs. The major VPN entities as well as some digital rights groups have also raised privacy concerns for users in storing their data.

Tech companies including Facebook and Google also warned that the rules made by CERT-In could create a frightening environment.

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