Webinar: Cyber Threats during Uncertainty and Recovery Post Pandemic

On 10 June, the UK India Business Council welcomed Control Risks experts for an enlightening webinar discussing ‘Cyber Threats during Uncertainty and Recovery Post Pandemic.’

UKIBC Associate Director Meghna Misra-Elder chaired the discussion led by Control Risks’ James Owen, Partner and Head of Cyber Security in Europe, Middle East, and Africa; Amit Narayan, Partner, India and South Asia; and Hemant Shivakumar, Senior Political Risk Analyst for South Asia.

The discussion began by setting the scene of the cyber threat landscape, which has seen an increase in the volume of attacks over the past six months. It was noted there is always a link between high impact events, such as a pandemic, and cyber threats. Targeting patterns have mirrored the spread of the virus with a wide variety of networks being attacked.

In our current situation, it is crucial that we maintain cyber security best practices. When learning how to best manage risk at a distance while we work from home, there are three complications to consider: capacity, difficulty, and volatility.

Data will be the ‘new oil’ in relation to India’s data privacy law. The Indian Government is keen to pass a new cyber security strategy, with its approach focusing on data localisation. As the business environment becomes more regulated, there are a few risks posed for businesses: how to regulate consent, storage, and mirroring; increased compliance and regulatory enforcement with localisation; arbitrariness with judicial interventions; and contending with backdoor encryption.

The speakers covered stakeholders’ involvement in cyber security and regulatory aspects. Further clarity is needed around how the Federal government will enforce the stakeholder plan.

This brings us to cross-border data transfers. Here, risk management is principal. Current global trade disputes show that countries are taking steps to control the use of technologies.

COVID-19 has accelerated many of the key technology, business, professional and work/life related trends that we were already seeing emerge. In the same way, it has exacerbated the risks and threats that companies face.

There are a few key considerations for companies operating in the UK and India to consider: insider risk, digital transformation, redefining governance for the new normal, resilient cyber framework, regulatory compliance, and vendor/compliance risks. Cyber security assessments need to be continuous, and adoption of the Internet of Things (IOT) is highly recommended.

When properly cared for, your data can be your biggest asset, but without a plan to store and secure it, your data can also become your biggest liability.

Thank you to our expert speakers for providing their valuable insights. We invite you to watch the webinar below for the discussion in full.