Geopolitics of cybersecurity

How international organizations, tasked to manage global technology issues, fare have distinct implications for countries like India who rely greatly on technology to drive economic growth, propel social change and deter threats harming India’s cyberspace and digital economy. Problems caused by various technologies and technology firms have generated demand for international negotiations to create viable rules and norms. For instance, social media companies like Facebook and Twitter are facing intense backlash after years of ignoring abuse on their platforms that stoke prevailing social and ethnic tensions. Cyber attacks are rising from both state and non-state actors. Conflicts over national laws concerning data use and storage are common. Issues like data, 5G, AI, social media and cybersecurity have domestic and global effects – who controls these technologies and how they are developed and used matters greatly as it defines how nations trade, behave and fight with each other.
Despite being one of the most cyber-attacked countries in the world, India has not sufficiently exercised its diplomatic clout to weigh in on these critical fissures.
The aim of this focus area, therefore, is to produce quality research that can be used by policy-makers to contribute to global governance for a in a manner that enhances the role of international law in governing technology while furthering the interests of Indian citizens.