Centre exempts CERT-In from the purview of the RTI act

Subject : Science and Tech

Section: Awareness in IT

In the news:

THE CENTRE has exempted the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), the national nodal agency to deal with cyber security threats like hacking and phishing, from the purview of the Right to Information Act, 2005.
The Right to Information Act, 2005 is administered by the Department of Personnel and Training.

Center’s power to exempt CERT-In from RTI ACT 2005:

The Centre has used its powers given under sub-section (2) of Section 24 of the RTI Act to exempt CERT-In from the purview of the transparency law.
Using those powers, the Centre has included CERT-In at serial number 27 in the Second Schedule of the RTI Act.
The 26 other intelligence and security organisations that are exempted from the purview of RTI Act 2005 are the Intelligence Bureau; Research and Analysis Wing including its technical wing namely, the Aviation Research Centre of the Cabinet Secretariat; Directorate of Revenue Intelligence; Central Economic Intelligence Bureau; Directorate of Enforcement; Narcotics Control Bureau; Special Frontier Force; Border Security Force; Central Reserve Police Force; Indo-Tibetan Border Police; Central Industrial Security Force; National Security Guards; Assam Rifles; Sashtra Seema Bal; Directorate General of Income-tax (Investigation); National Technical Research Organisation; Financial Intelligence Unit, India; Special Protection Group; Defence Research and Development Organisation; Border Road Development Board; National Security Council Secretariat; Central Bureau of Investigation; National Investigation Agency; National Intelligence Grid; and Strategic Forces Command.

CERT-in:

It is an office within the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) established in 2004 under the IT Act 2000.
It is the nodal agency to
- Deal with cyber security threats.
- Strengthen the security-related defence of the Indian Internet domain.
- Coordinate with public and private organisations in India when cyber incidents like data breaches and ransomware attacks are reported.
- Issue advisories for software vulnerabilities as guidance for organisations.
CERT-IN has overlapping responsibilities with other agencies such as:
- National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) which is under the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), that comes under the Prime Minister’s Office.
- The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is under the Ministry of Home Affairs.