India Will Train Police To Catch Cybercriminals

In an effort to better protect the millions of outsourced consumer and business records that find their way to its shores each year, India has begun training law enforcement personnel to identify and catch cybercriminals.

The state of Karnataka, home to tech hot spot Bangalore, on Thursday announced the opening of a lab where it expects to train more than 1,000 police officers and other law enforcement personnel annually in cybercrime investigation techniques. The center, located in Bangalore, will be the third such facility opened by Indian authorities. Cybersecurity centers already operate in the cities of Mumbai and Thane.

"Various forms of cybercrime are on the rise around the world, and while India continues to be among the safest places in respect to a strong security framework, there's a continuous need to be vigilant," says Nandkumar Saravade, director of cybersecurity and compliance at NASSCOM, a lobby group representing India's outsourcing industry. NASSCOM is launching the center in partnership with the government of Karnataka. India's Canara Bank is also participating in the project.

Training will include teaching police officers how the Internet, e-mail, and other computer-based tools can be used by criminals to illegally obtain information stored in databases operated by India's outsourcers, which handle millions of sensitive consumer and business records on behalf of customers in the United States and around the world.

The security of India's outsourcing industry was questioned last year by a U.K. television station. In a documentary, reporters for Channel 4 said they were able to buy consumer data from Indian outsourcing employees for a few dollars.