The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Wednesday denied any hacking or ransomware attack to its website. The statement comes at a time when the Centre has been assuring that India is not a victim of the ransomware attack and according to Union Minister of Information and Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad, “India is not a victim of the attack in the manner the other countries of the world are facing today.”
The recent global ransomware attack led to the government taking a precautionary step of shutting down hundreds of ATMs. In this regard, cyber expert Pawan Duggal has called for ransomware being made a “stringent offence punishable with minimum 7-10 years imprisonment and fine” as ransomware is “still not a cyber crime recognized under the Information Technology Act (2000).”
Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has also stated that “the Government of India is keeping a strong watch on the issue” and that the government is working with the banking system to reinforce their security architecture.