Cyber Resilience: Govt & Industry Collaboration Key for India's Future

National Cyber Security Coordinator Navin Kumar Singh emphasized that greater industry-government collaboration and real-time threat info sharing are vital for India's future cyber resilience amid its expanding digital economy and new tech risks.

Govt Calls for Industry Collaboration

Greater collaboration between industry and government, along with real-time cyber threat information sharing mechanisms, will play a critical role in shaping India's future cyber resilience framework amid rapidly evolving digital and cybersecurity challenges, Navin Kumar Singh, who is the National Cyber Security Coordinator in Government of India, said on Tuesday.

"There might be hesitation in sharing incidents, but industry-level information sharing and analysis mechanisms have proved to be effective globally. Sharing information relating to cyber threats, even filtered information, helps in understanding the threat picture and taking the next steps," Singh said while addressing CyberComm 2026 event held by the FICCI on digital infrastructure and cybersecurity.

He said India's expanding digital economy and growing adoption of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and future 6G technologies are creating enormous opportunities while simultaneously increasing cyber risks.

India's digital economy is projected to contribute nearly 20 per cent of GDP by the end of this decade, supported by rapid digitalisation, interoperable public platforms and wider internet penetration. Citizen-facing digital registrations have increased 3.3 times in the last five years, while India's startup ecosystem has grown from nearly 1,000 startups in 2016 to over 2.23 lakh startups currently. Technologies such as ONDC are expected to bring millions of retailers into the digital commerce ecosystem, while AI, IoT and high-bandwidth, low-latency communication technologies are accelerating digital transformation across sectors.

Emerging Cyber Threats: AI and Quantum Computing

Highlighting the future threat landscape, Singh warned that open-source AI models with capabilities comparable to advanced AI systems such as GPT-5.5 could become widely available within the next six to nine months, significantly increasing cybersecurity risks.

"There is a real quantum jump in the capabilities of AI systems for both cyber offence and cyber defence. The time window in which we need to act is short," he said.

Singh also cautioned that quantum computing could become a practical reality within the next four to five years, making preparation for the post-quantum cryptography transition essential. "The National Quantum Mission has already come up with a roadmap for transition towards post-quantum cryptography, and a task force has now been formed for implementation," he said.

AI-Driven Defence a Key Strategy

Singh said that AI-driven cyber defence systems and automated threat detection mechanisms will become key components of future cybersecurity strategies as cyberattacks become more complex and persistent.

Global and National Threat Landscape

Referring to the global cyber threat environment, Singh said ransomware, cyber espionage, supply-chain compromises and attacks by state-sponsored actors are becoming increasingly sophisticated. He warned that ransomware-as-a-service models have lowered entry barriers for attackers, while cloud concentration risks, dark web collaboration and virtual private networks are making attribution and detection more difficult.

Cybersecurity incidents in India have increased sharply in recent years, with cybercrime cases rising more than tenfold in the last six years, although many attacks still go unreported.

Strengthening India's Cyber Ecosystem

Singh stressed the need to promote indigenous cybersecurity products, testing infrastructure and certification ecosystems to reduce dependence on foreign technologies and strengthen India's cyber preparedness.

Calling cybersecurity a board-level issue, Singh urged industries to adopt secure-by-design systems, strengthen monitoring and resilience frameworks, map third-party risks carefully and invest more in research and development. "Our ultimate goal is to build a vibrant indigenous cybersecurity ecosystem and ensure India remains prepared for future digital and cyber challenges," Singh said. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)