Surveillance

Election rules tweaked to restrict public inspection of electronic records

The government has tweaked an election rule to prevent public inspection of certain electronic documents such as CCTV camera and webcasting footage as well as video recordings of candidates to prevent their misuse. Based on the recommendation of the Election Commission (EC), the Union law ministry has amended Rule 93 of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, to restrict the type of "papers" or documents open to public inspection. According to Rule 93, all "papers" related to elections shall be open to public inspection. The amendment inserts "as specified in these rules" after "papers". Law ministry and EC officials separately explained that a court case was the "trigger" behind the amendment. While documents such as nomination forms, appointment of election agents, results and election account statements are mentioned in the Conduct of Election Rules, electronic documents such as CCTV camera footage, webcasting footage and video recording of candidates during the Model Code of Cond

Canada deploys aerial task force to boost border security to appease Trump

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police will operate the task force, made up of helicopters, drones and mobile surveillance towers

PierSight's Varuna satellite set for 24/7 all-weather maritime surveillance

The company has developed Varuna, a maritime surveillance satellite that will aboard the Isro's PSLV launcher as a secondary payload aboard the POEM platform, to help perform in-orbit experiments

Australian HC overturns law that forced migrants to wear tracking bracelets

Australia's highest court ruled Wednesday that migrants can't be forced by law to wear electronic tracking bracelets or to comply with curfews. The ruling is a blow to the government, whose lawyers have unsuccessfully argued that laws imposing curfews and tracking technology are justified to protect the community. Five of the seven High Court judges ruled that the tough restrictions placed on more than 100 migrants, usually because of their criminal records, were unconstitutional because the conditions amounted to punishment. The constitution states that punishment must be imposed by judges, not lawmakers. The restrictions were part of emergency laws hastily passed in December in response to another High Court ruling that non-citizens could no longer be detained indefinitely as an alternative to deportation. That ruling in the case of a stateless Rohingya man reversed a 28-year-old High Court precedent that allowed indefinite detention where there were security concerns. Wednesday'

This Pakistani journalist finds his car bugged, mocks spy agency's old tech

Pakistani journalist Azaz Syed revealed that when he went to a mechanic for car repairs, he discovered a bugging device of outdated technology from the 1990s

DGCA removes 'enhanced surveillance' of SpiceJet after fund infusion

Random spot checks of low-cost carrier's operational aircraft will continue, says regulator

CIA makes it easier, safer for potential informants to share tips

The CIA wants to make it easier -- and safer -- for people in Iran, China and North Korea to share information with the US's premier spy agency. The agency on Wednesday posted online instructions in Korean, Mandarin and Farsi detailing steps that potential informants can take to contact US intelligence officials without putting themselves in danger. The instructions include ways to reach the CIA on its public website or on the darknet, a part of the Internet that can only be accessed using special tools designed to hide the user's identity. The CIA posted similar instructions in Russian two years ago following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "People are trying to reach out to us from around the world and we are offering them instructions for how to do that safely," the agency said in a statement. "Our efforts on this front have been successful in Russia, and we want to make sure individuals in other authoritarian regimes know that we're open for business." The tips, presented in ...

Death of Pakistan's digital economy? Here's why its businessmen are afraid

The situation has become so dire that many businesses situated in Pakistan are considering relocating their operations to other countries

Broadcast Bill threatens independence of press, curbs free speech: Congress

Party leader Pawan Khera said the proposed Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill will pave the way for 'excessive surveillance' in online world

Army to get first Hermes-900 on May 18, to boost surveillance on Pak border

The Hermes-900 known as the Drishti-10 drone is being supplied to Indian forces including Indian Army and Navy by Adani Defence Systems

MeitY amends IT rules: Surveillance data to be deleted within 6 months

Previously, the power to delete surveillance records rested solely with the security agency responsible for the surveillance

Navy enhanced presence of ships, aerial surveillance in Arabian Sea: Govt

The Indian Navy has enhanced deployment of ships and aerial surveillance in the central Arabian Sea and off east Coast of Somalia in restoring maritime security in the region, the government said on Friday, amid rising global concerns over Houthi militants targeting merchant ships in the Red Sea and adjoining areas. Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt also said Indian Navy units are being deployed in strategic waters in Djibouti, Gulf of Aden as well as in the North Arabian Sea to provide security to merchant vessels. The comments by Bhatt, while responding to separate questions in Lok Sabha, came as the Houthi militants continued to attack various cargo vessels in the Red Sea and other strategic waterways in the region apparently in response to Israel's military offensive in Gaza. Bhatt said the Navy deployed its units in the Gulf of Aden and East coast of Africa in anti-piracy patrols since 2008 and a total of 3,440 ships and over 25,000 seafarers have been "safely ...

US govt scrambles to win renewal of key spy programme: What it means

With just seven weeks until the end of the year, the Biden administration is running out of time to win the reauthorization of a spy program it says is vital to preventing terrorism, catching spies and disrupting cyberattacks. The tool, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, will expire at the end of December unless the White House and Congress can cut a deal and resolve an unusually vexing debate that has yielded unlikely alliances at the intersection of privacy and national security. Without the program, administration officials warn, the government won't be able to collect crucial intelligence overseas. But civil liberties advocates from across the political spectrum say the law as it stands now infringes on the privacy of ordinary Americans and insist that changes are needed before the program is reauthorised. Renewing this law before it expires is among the most consequential national security decisions we face as a country, Assistant Attorney General Matthew

Hamas outmaneuvered Israel's surveillance prowess by simply going dark

The militant group's attack on Saturday caught Israel's national security apparatus completely off guard - a shocking fact given the scope of the incursion

IAF considering induction of six additional Netra early-warning aircraft

The Netra Airborne Early Warning & Control System (AEW&CS) aircraft is a multi-sensor platform developed by DRDO in collaboration with the laboratory under it - the Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS)

Iran proposes long jail terms, AI surveillance in harsh new hijab law

Experts said the Bill, which has yet to be passed, was a reminder to Iranians that the regime will not back down from its stance on the hijab despite the country's enormous protests last year

Exchanges revise enhanced surveillance measures for micro small cap cos

Leading stock exchanges BSE and NSE have relaxed enhanced surveillance measures (ESM) framework for micro small cap companies that have a market cap of less than Rs 500 crore. This came over a month after rules were put in place by the bourses to curb volatility in the counters of such firms. The new framework would be applicable from July 24, according to circulars issued by the exchanges on Tuesday. Earlier, the stocks under ESM Stage-II were permitted to trade only once a week under the periodic call auction. Now, this has been revised to all trading days. "Trading permitted with +/- 2 per cent price band on all trading days under periodic call auction," the exchanges said. However, the norms of 100 per cent margin and trade-for-trade settlement remain unchanged. Besides, rules remain unchanged for stocks that remain under ESM Stage-I. "In joint discussion of exchanges and Sebi, the current surveillance actions under the ESM framework were reviewed," the circulars noted. The

Walkie-talkies: Rlys gets exemption from Make in India procurement policy

This comes after locally sourced technology provided poor communications over increased distances

UK govt to remove Chinese surveillance equipment from sensitive sites

The UK government has laid out plans to publish a timeline for the removal of Chinese surveillance equipment from sensitive sites as part of stepped-up national security measures, weeks after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said China posed the "biggest challenge" to global security and prosperity. In amendments tabled to the government's Procurement Bill ahead of its Report Stage in Parliament next week, the UK Cabinet Office said on Wednesday that it is committing to publishing a timeline for the removal of surveillance equipment produced by companies subject to China's National Intelligence Law from sensitive central government sites. It says the move builds on action taken last year to halt the installation of new equipment on the government estate and will provide "reassurance" that departments are removing surveillance equipment from sensitive sites. These new measures will protect our sensitive sectors from companies which could threaten national security and are a firm deterrence

Goa Police keep close watch on coastal areas using surveillance drones

Goa Police have decided to keep a close and vigilant watch on activities on the state's coastal areas by using drones