CyberPeace Foundation’s Comprehensive Initiatives: Empowering Individuals and Institutions Against Cybersecurity Risks

CXOToday has engaged in an exclusive interview with Mr, Vineet Kumar, Founder & Global President, CyberPeace Foundation

Q1. What are the key initiatives CyberPeace has undertaken to raise awareness about cybersecurity risks among individuals and organizations?

CyberPeace has implemented several initiatives to raise awareness about cybersecurity risks among individuals and organizations. One of our flagship programs is the CyberPeace Initiative in partnership with Google. This initiative is aimed at empowering over 40 million individuals across the country with an awareness-building program and a comprehensive multilingual digital resource hub with content available in up to 15 Indian languages to empower netizens in building resilience against misinformation and practising responsible online behaviour. We have also established the CyberPeace Centre of Excellence (CCoE), a platform for collaboration on cybersecurity research and development involving academic institutions, industry players, government agencies, law enforcement, and military forces. Another significant initiative is the Global CyberPeace Challenge, an international hackathon that unites hackers, programmers, and cybersecurity experts to tackle global cybersecurity issues. Additionally, we have a network of 70,000 CyberPeace Corps volunteers from over 130 countries. This network supports communities in using the internet safely and effectively. Collectively, these initiatives aim to raise cybersecurity awareness and empower both individuals and organizations to navigate the digital world securely.

Q2. Can you elaborate on the specific strategies and training programs the foundation employs to build cybersecurity capacities at both individual and institutional levels?

CyberPeace has executed initiatives at both the individual and organizational levels to build cybersecurity capacities. Starting with initiatives at the individual level, our ongoing flagship CyberPeace initiative, in partnership with Google, empowers more than 40 million internet users with the skills needed to combat misinformation online.

Another key initiative, Digital Shakti, focuses on providing the requisite skills and educational resources to help women learn the basics of online safety and digital literacy. Through this initiative, we have empowered more than 6 Lakh women, with the recently launched 5th phase of the initiative aims to take this number to more than 10 lakh women.

In response to the growing number of cyber frauds, we have launched the #FightTheFraud initiative in collaboration with Amazon India and Rashtriya Raksha University. This initiative focuses on equipping individuals to respond to cyber frauds by educating them through webinars, workshops, and social media campaigns. Supplementing these efforts, we also operate a dedicated helpline number (9570000066) where a team of experts provides support to individuals affected by cybercrimes, offering them necessary assistance.

At the institutional level, the foundation’s activities include the NIHIT (National Initiative for Holistic Innovation & Trade), which is designed to support dialogue between India and the US on topics such as cybersecurity resilience, inclusive growth, entrepreneurship, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). One of NIHIT’s key projects is the Prakshepan hackathon, which focuses on discovering and mentoring startups that contribute to strengthening trade relations between India and the US, thereby driving both innovation and economic development.

Q3. How does CyberPeace Foundation collaborate with international organizations to enhance global cybersecurity measures?

The CyberPeace Foundation has established strategic partnerships with international organizations to enhance global cybersecurity efforts. Notably, we partnered with UNICEF on our project iSAFE to educate and train a diverse range of professionals, including law enforcement, social welfare organizations, and educational departments, who interact directly with vulnerable youth and children.

The project focused on enhancing the participants’ understanding of their roles and responsibilities in responding to child victims, providing guidance establishing effective first response mechanisms, and raising awareness of legal remedies and best practices for dealing with adolescent victims of cybercrimes.

This collaboration significantly bolstered cybersecurity resilience through nationwide programs, improved law enforcement capabilities, and heightened awareness. They also foster effective knowledge sharing and capacity building, enhancing our ability to address cyber threats across India.

Q4. What are the future goals of CyberPeace in terms of expanding its cybersecurity initiatives and addressing emerging cyber threats globally?

Our long-term goal is to position India as a global leader in cybersecurity. By leveraging the country’s existing strengths including our large talent pool and growing size of the cybersecurity industry, we aim to contribute to the goal of achieving zero significant cybersecurity breaches in India.

Additionally, we are focused on developing a thriving ecosystem of innovation, education, and talent development in the cybersecurity domain. This will involve initiatives to nurture the next generation of cybersecurity professionals, incentivize research and development, and encourage collaboration between industry, academia, and government.

These strategic objectives are central to our efforts to expand India’s cybersecurity capabilities and address emerging cyber threats on a global scale. By cultivating India’s position as a hub for cutting-edge cybersecurity expertise and solutions, we seek to solidify the country’s role as a key player in the global fight against evolving cyber threats.

Q5. Can you provide an example of a successful advocacy campaign led by CyberPeace Foundation and its impact on cybersecurity policies or practices?

CyberPeace has been actively instrumental by taking the initiative, conducting ground-level research & policy activities, campaigns empowering citizens about their rights & duties in the digital space and overall promoting cybersecurity and addressing privacy issues at the national and global levels.

CyberPeace conducted a campaign Drive4CyberPeace which aimed at gaining a grassroots-level understanding of what data privacy & protection mean to people and how they unknowingly breach their own data. The drive was instrumental in gaining critical input and opinion from the various stakeholders including academicians, students, frontline workers, and netizens. The drive contributed to significant recommendations for the newly enacted Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

CyberPeace partnered with the Missing Link Trust (MISSING) and launched an SOS campaign in association with PVR NEST, as a first-of-its-kind Public Service Announcement (PSA) video to bring awareness to combat the heinous crime of online child trafficking.

CyberPeace also conducted workshops in collaboration with UNICEF on the topic “Child Rights and Online Gaming: Opportunities and Challenges for Children” in Goa, Hyderabad, and Kolkata. The large-scale workshops successfully addressed the intersection of child rights and online gaming, fostering collaboration among experts, industry professionals, policymakers, educators, and parents. It generated actionable insights aimed at creating a balanced, child-friendly online gaming environment.

CyberPeace further strengthened its impact through comprehensive Awareness Campaigns and Training Programs, including the development of a ‘Financial Fraud Awareness Toolkit’ in collaboration with NETFLIX.