What are the different elements of cyber security? Keeping in view the challenges in cyber security examine the extent to which India has successfully developed a comprehensive National Cyber Security Strategy. (Answer in 250 words)

Cybersecurity protects the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information and systems against unauthorised access, disruption, manipulation and destruction.

Core elements

• Risk assessment, governance, security-by-design, identity and access management, encryption and secure networks.
• Continuous monitoring, vulnerability management, backups, incident response, disaster recovery and cyber forensics.
• User awareness, privacy protection, supply-chain security and protection of critical information infrastructure are equally important.

India’s challenges

• Rapid digitisation, legacy systems, ransomware, phishing, data theft, disinformation and attacks on critical infrastructure expand the threat surface.
• Dependence on imported hardware and software, shortage of skilled professionals, fragmented reporting and weak cyber hygiene complicate response.
• Small enterprises and citizens often lack resources, while jurisdictional and attribution problems hamper prosecution.

National strategy assessment

• India has built institutions such as CERT-In, the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre, sectoral CSIRTs and cybercrime reporting mechanisms. Laws, incident directions, digital public infrastructure and capacity-building programmes provide important foundations.
• However, a fully comprehensive, publicly articulated and consistently implemented national strategy needs clearer roles, State-level capacity, data protection, mandatory resilience standards, indigenous capability, tested exercises and stronger public–private information sharing.

CIA triad; CERT-In; NCIIPC; critical infrastructure; ransomware; cyber resilience; incident response; privacy.