Indian Army raising new units to counter China, Pak in cyber-warfare

With adversaries China and Pakistan increasing their online activities to target India, the Indian Army has established new specialist units to counter these threats and challenges as part of its cyber warfare initiatives. The decision was made during the Army Commanders Conference, which was led by Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande in the third week of this month.

“To safeguard the communication networks and increase preparedness levels in this niche domain, Command Cyber Operations and Support Wings (CCOSW) are being raised in Indian Army,” ANI reported citing its official sources.

According to them, “cyberspace has emerged as an important component of the military domain, both in grey zone warfare and conventional operations.”

According to the sources, the expansion of cyber warfare capabilities by our adversaries has made the cyber domain more competitive and contested than ever before, emphasising the importance and need for such specialist units.

“The Indian Army today is rapidly migrating towards net centricity, which entails an increased reliance on modern communication systems at all levels,” they said.

Specifying the role of these new units, the sources said: “These organisations will assist the formations to undertake the mandated cyber security functions to strengthen the cyber security posture of the Indian Army.”

In recent years, the Army has taken a number of steps to counter adversary aggression, including virtual honey trapping and hacking. To address these issues, the Defence Cyber Agency is collaborating with the three services.