Work from home offers significant opportunity for Indian security product companies

Indian security product companies have a significant opportunity to help address security challenges that have emerged as a number of enterprises continue to 'work from home' (WFH) amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, a report said on Thursday.

The Data Security Council of India (DSCI), in a report titled 'Security Use Cases and Solutions', said amidst the fear of contagion, working from home has become the new normal for many professionals.

"However, with the huge rise in the number of employees working remotely, it is of vital importance that we also take care of our cyber hygiene and be productive simultaneously. As organisations grapple and brace this new normalcy...some of the Indian security product companies can assist you in this journey," it added.

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The National Centre of Excellence for Cybersecurity Technology Development & Entrepreneurship, a joint initiative of DSCI and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), scouted for innovative technologies and security solutions for WFH which may emerge in the coming times and can be deployed immediately or in the near future.

The report provided a list of startups working in areas including data security, access control, identity management access provision, securing BYOD (bring your own device) connections and multi-cloud environments.

DSCI CEO Rama Vedashree said the purpose of the compilation is to create visibility of innovation and efforts made in this area, increase awareness about the ideas and solutions to solve problems of the new paradigm, and help these organisations enhance their market potential and explore opportunities.

MeitY Secretary Ajay Sawhney said while work from home has enabled organisations to continue working, they also face new vulnerabilities.

"As we move forward, work from home is a fact of life and it can give us tremendous new opportunities...We not only have to take care of the issues (arising) but we have to do that in a manner that we remain leaders in adopting these new technologies, in growing and nurturing these new technologies," he said.

He added that Indian startups working on security should focus on providing these solutions to not just India, but the world.

"For too long, we have been dependent on products coming from outside. It's time to change that," he added.

He cited the example of 'Aarogya Setu', and said the app was made by a team of about 15 persons from the industry coming together as volunteers.

Another four to five people joined, including senior mentors from the industry, and this team put together the app within 21 days, he said.