The Mumbai police, having finally realised the dangers of the Internet, is organising a Cyber Safety Week in the city after over three years, from May 24 to 28. The week is being organised in association with the department of information technology, ministry of communication and information technology.
Similar programmes have been organised between 2003 and 2006, but such a mass outreach programme to educate and increase people’s awareness about the seriousness of cyber crime, has not been held since then. Commissioner of police D. Sivanandan said, “We have seen that terrorists have misused the
cyber world in the past and have tried to misguide the police and other agencies. Two wi-fi connections
were hacked into and misused by the Indian Mujahideen.”
He added, “We do not want any one to misuse technology which could lead to huge misfortune for people and our government, so this Cyber Safety Week is being observed to educate our officers, people and also private and government agencies in dealing with cyber crimes and preventing them from happening.” Other firms that are part of the organisation of the Cyber Safety Week are Nasscom, DSCI, Hexaware, IMC, IPCRC, MPAA, TAFI, TIE alongwith C-DAC and KPMG.
Joint commissioner of police, crime, Himanshu Roy said “Training is being imparted to other officers at the cyber police station located at the Bandra-Kurla Complex. During the Cyber Safety Week, several programmes have been organised wherein interactive
session with IT professionals, BPO professionals, officials from law enforcement agencies have been organised.” He added, “Other than these, seminars on subjects like the use of technology in data mining analysis and integration for use in financial fraud investigations has been organised for police officers. There will be interactive kiosks wherein our officers will communicate with people at malls and public places. There will also be round table conferences and workshops.”
Techno-expert Vijay Mukhi has also been roped in by the Mumbai police to help out with various workshops and training programmes. Mr Mukhi said, “Today, if we do not take the right precautions, cyber crime could lead to heavy losses in the near future. One has to take proper measures while using the Internet, social networking sites and spam mails. Viruses and Trojans for instance, could be much bigger threats if not dealt with properly.”