The Ministry of Defence has asked the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to involve the defence authorities while drafting policies and regulations for big data and analytics in the telecommunication space. Responding to TRAI’s consultation process on ‘Leveraging Artificial Intelligence and Big Data in Telecommunication Sector’, the MoD said “the MoD in GOI should be involved in the same (the state’s initiative to develop an AI strategy), so as to align the AI strategy to the security and data intelligence requirements of the arm forces”.
The Defence Ministry also emphasised that every AI-based analytics on big data should be shared with appropriate stakeholders to enhance operational and internal security aspects. Furthermore, these protocols, set up by telecom stakeholders, should undergo regular audits by law enforcement agencies.
The Ministry raised concerns about cyber attacks on the networks of significant TSPs and ISPs in the sector. “The communication backbone of ISPs uses a plethora of network switching elements, hence, an increased risk of cyber attacks exists.” Moreover, according to the MoD, the counter solutions in the telecom sector to respond to these attacks are usually reactive and cannot proactively respond to these cyber attacks efficiently. Given that armed forces also have a dependency on civil hired media, the MoD wants to use AI to analyse the networks used by armed forces to identify potential threats and malware.
The MoD also urged TRAI to use the vast amount of call data generated by the Indian telecom industry to strengthen internal security, especially in troubled areas. “The telecom industry generates and stores vast amounts of data in terms of call data records and network data. It also comprises of data related to customer profiles including mobility and device data, customer usage patterns and location data. The AI strategy should leverage this information to strengthen internal security, especially in troubled areas,” said the ministry of defence.
