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In a move that signals India\u2019s shift from reactive cybersecurity to proactive cyber defence, the government on Friday said it is considering a new legal framework for cybersecurity amid increasing cyber threats using artificial intelligence.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWith AI becoming the norm, the nature of cyber threats is going to totally change\u2026We also have to create a new legal framework for cybersecurity with all these challenges that we are facing today,\u201d Union IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told reporters at the launch of AI & Cyber Threat Research Center at the India AI summit in New Delhi.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Telecom operator Bharti Airtel and US-based cloud security company Zscaler launched the research centre to advance national cyber resilience, protecting sectors, industries and assets that are essential to India\u2019s economic and national security. The AI and Cybersecurity centre will also partner with government agencies to neutralize and prevent cyber-attacks. It will drive the adoption of modern security frameworks, with a specific focus on AI-driven defences.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Another focus will be to strengthen the cybersecurity talent pipeline.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n While Vaishnaw did not share details, he urged IT companies and telecom operators to seriously consider new ways to counter cyber threats and to align with the government.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI am sure more and more people will join. We have already received interest from many other enterprises in the country. It will be more like a lot of give back in the area of philanthropy or CSR that we do from our (Airtel) side in terms of the investment that is required in infrastructure,\u201d Bharti Enterprises founder and chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal told reporters.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Mittal added that Airtel\u2019s contribution to the initiative would be granting the research centre access to its vast network infrastructure and connected nodes across India. The same will be used to detect and respond to incoming threats, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n As part of the initiative, Zscaler will deploy a specialized threat research team focused on India. Airtel will contribute deep visibility into IoT and mobile traffic, collaborating with Zscaler to monitor networks and develop new solutions, enabling faster identification of suspicious activity and more effective coordination with ecosystem stakeholders.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Experts said the launch of the centre and discussions on a new legal framework for cybersecurity align with India\u2019s broader ambitions for digital sovereignty and the adoption of trusted AI, but there is a need to first understand AI incidents and protect enterprises and citizens from them.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWe need significant and diversified investment in research on all aspects of AI threats that may emerge. There is a need to clearly understand and prepare a taxonomy of AI incidents, reporting them, and protecting against the same,\u201d said Dhruv Garg, partner at the Indian Governance and Policy Project (IGAP).<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\nData-driven sovereignty<\/strong><\/h2>\n