Cyber warfare is considered by some defense analysts to be a larger threat than even Al Qaeda or…

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Cyber warfare is considered by some defense analysts to be a larger threat than even Al Qaeda or terrorism. What do you understand by Cyber warfare? Outline the cyber threats which India is vulnerable to and bring out the state of the country's preparedness to deal with the same.

Ghissu Editorial · Accepted Answer

Cyber warfare is a state's use of digital attacks to spy on or cripple another nation's critical systems, and India faces espionage, grid, banking and information attacks with an institutional architecture that still lags the threat. CERT-In handled over 29.44 lakh incidents in 2025.

**Introduction**

Cyber warfare is the use of digital attacks by a state or its proxy to spy on, disrupt or destroy another nation's critical systems, making cyberspace the fifth domain of war. It can outrank terrorism because it is cheap and deniable: Stuxnet, found in 2010, wrecked Iran's Natanz centrifuges without a shot.

**Cyber Threats India Is Vulnerable To**

1. **Espionage**: The Shadows in the Cloud report (2010) traced stolen Indian defence and embassy files to a China-based network.
2. **Critical infrastructure**: Malware hit Kudankulam's administrative network in 2019, and the China-linked group RedEcho was tied to intrusions into the power sector around the Mumbai outage of 2020.
3. **Finance and data**: Cosmos Bank lost about Rs 94 crore in 2018, and ransomware crippled AIIMS Delhi in 2022.
4. **Information warfare**: Fake defence domains and misinformation surged after the Pahalgam attack of 2025 (MP-IDSA).

**State of India's Cyber Preparedness**

SKETCH: tree | India's Cyber Defence Architecture
- NSCS coordination
  - CERT-In (incident response)
  - NCIIPC (critical infrastructure)
  - Defence Cyber Agency
  - I4C (cyber crime)

1. **Policy base**: The National Cyber Security Policy 2013 and the IT Act 2000 frame the effort, and India reached Tier 1 of the ITU Global Cybersecurity Index 2024.
2. **Strained response**: CERT-In handled over 29.44 lakh incidents in 2025 (PIB), but incidents more than doubled between 2022 and 2024.
3. **Gaps**: The 2020 draft National Cyber Security Strategy is pending and skilled professionals are scarce.

**Conclusion**

India has the skeleton of cyber defence but not yet its muscle. Indigenous technology, skilled people and a clear doctrine would make cyberspace a pillar of comprehensive national security.

Cyber warfare is considered by some defense analysts to be a larger threat than even Al Qaeda or terrorism. What do you understand by Cyber warfare? Outline the cyber threats which India is vulnerable to and bring out the state of the country's preparedness to deal with the same.

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