Defence Cyber Agency

The Defence Cyber Agency (DCA) is a tri-service command of the Indian Armed Forces. Headquartered in New Delhi, the agency is tasked with handling cyber security threats. The DCA draws personnel from all three branches of the Armed Forces. The head of the DCA is an officer of two-star rank, and reports to the Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC) through the Integrated Defence Staff (IDS).[1]

Defence Cyber Agency
ActiveEstablished: 28 September 2018
Activated: November 2019
Country India
TypeTri-service command
RoleCyber Warfare
Part ofIntegrated Defence Staff (IDS)
HeadquartersNew Delhi, India
Commanders
Current
commander		Rear Admiral Mohit Gupta

Indian Navy Rear Admiral Mohit Gupta was appointed in May 2019 as the first head of the DCA.[2] The DCA is expected to be operational by November 2019.[3]

History

The Naresh Chandra Task Force was set up in July 2011 by National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon to review the recommendations of the Kargil Review Committee, assess the implementation progress and further suggest new reforms related to national security.[4][5] The task force was led by Naresh Chandra, retired Indian Administrative Service officer, and comprised 13 other members, including Gopalaswami Parthasarathy, Air Chief Marshal Srinivasapuram Krishnaswamy (Retd), Admiral Arun Prakash (Retd), Lt Gen V. R. Raghavan (Retd), Anil Kakodkar, K C Verma and V K Duggal. The committee conducted the first holistic review of national security since the Kargil Review Committee and submitted its classified report to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 23 May 2012.[6] Among its recommendations, the Task Force recommended the creation of a cyber command, an aerospace command and a special operations command. All three units were proposed to be tri-service commands in order to bring the various special forces units of the military under a unified command and control structure.[7][8]

The creation of the Defence Cyber Agency (DCA), the Defence Space Agency (DSA), and the Armed Forces Special Operations Division (AFSOD) were approved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Combined Commanders' Conference at Jodhpur Air Force Station on 28 September 2018.[9] The existing Defence Information Assurance and Research Agency will be upgraded to form the new Defence Cyber Agency.[3]

Area of responsibility

The Week reported that the DCA would have the capability to hack into networks, mount surveillance operations, lay honeypot, recover deleted data from hard drives and cellphones, break into encrypted communication channels, and perform other complex objectives.[10] According to Lieutenant General Deependra Singh Hooda, the DCA will have the responsibility of framing a long-term policy for the security of military networks, which includes eliminating the use of foreign hardware and software in the Indian Armed Forces, and preparing a Cyberwarfare doctrine.[11]

See also

References
  1. "India setting up tri-service commands for special forces, cyber security, and space | Jane's 360". www.janes.com. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  2. "India set to have Defence Cyber Agency in May; Rear Admiral Mohit to be its first chief". ANI. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  3. P, Rajat. "Agencies take shape for special operations, space, cyber war". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  4. Joshi, Manoj. "Shutting his ears to change". India Today. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  5. Joshi, Manoj (March 2014). "Policy Report: The Unending Quest to Reform India National Security System" (PDF). S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) (www.rsis.edu.sg). Retrieved 2018-12-06.
  6. "All eyes on Naresh Chandra report on natl security today". Rediff. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  7. Kanwal, Gurmeet; Kohli, Neha. "Defence Reforms: A National Imperative" (PDF). Brookings. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  8. "Formation of Indian armed forces' special operations unit begins, to have 3000 commandos". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  9. Apr 30, ANI | Updated. "India set to have Defence Cyber Agency in May; Rear Admiral Mohit Gupta to be its first chief". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  10. "Three-pronged plan". The Week. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  11. "New Defence Cyber Agency Will Have to Work Around Stovepipes Built by Army, Navy & Air Force: Lt Gen Hooda". News18. Retrieved 2019-07-15.
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