Govt. tags ICICI Bank's IT resources as 'critical information infrastructure'
The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), in a notification, declared the IT resources of the ICICI Bank as critical infrastructure under Section 70 of the IT Act, 2000.
About Critical information infrastructure
- As per the Act, it means a computer resource, the incapacitation or destruction of which, shall have debilitating impact on national security, economy, public health or safety.
- Punishment/Fine under the act: Any person who secures access or attempts to secure access to a protected system in contravention of the provisions shall be punished with imprisonment of a term which may extend to 10 years and shall also be liable for a fine
- National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) has identified the following as ‘Critical Sectors’: –
- Power & Energy
- Banking, Financial Services & Insurance
- Telecom
- Transport
- Government
- Strategic & Public Enterprises
- Other entities included in it: the control system of all the electricity, oil, airports, railways, metros and transport systems
Significance of the declaration
- The declaration of IT resources of a private money lender as Critical information infrastructure is significant as the incidents of sophisticated cyber attacks have increased in recent times.
Exam Track
Prelims takeaway
- Critical information infrastructure
- National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC)
- IT Act, 2000