The 12th EIITF resonated the IT sector for AI preparedness

(L-R) Mr. Siddharth Sinhal, AVP- Smart Manufacturing- Simcon Digital Megatherm ITS; Ms. Sanghamitra Pyne,  Head IT Generation- CESC Ventures; Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu, Editor-in-chief- VARINDIA; Mr. Rajat Chand, Chairman & CEO- Mobi Active; Mr. Kripadyuti Sarkar, Group CIO-Ambuja Neotia; Mr. Hari Kishore Kusumakar, IPS- ADG & IGP Cybercrime West Bengal and CISO West Bengal; Prof. Amlan Chakrabarti, Head IT & Technology Innovation Cell, University of Calcutta; Mr. Manjit Nayak, Director-STPI; Mr. K L Lalani, Chairman- Lalani Group of Companies; Mr. Dattatray Katkar, Director Alliance- Allied Telesis; Ms. Berri Tay, Marketing Manager, Allied Telesis Asia Pacific Pte Ltd. & Ms. Minal Bhagat, Co-founder -Ensonic Computech

VARINDIA hosted the 12th edition of the Eastern India Information Technology Fair (EIITF) on 15th September, 2023 at Hyatt Regency, Kolkata, bringing together technology leaders from the corporate world, Value-Added Resellers (VARs), and various stakeholders from Eastern India to delve into the future of AI-driven technology and the latest trends and technologies in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector. 

The evening commenced with a warm welcome, emphasizing the importance of staying ahead in a rapidly transforming business landscape. The Eastern India Information Technology Fair has been a longstanding platform that connects businesses with the latest technologies, facilitating informed decisions. This year's event was designed to address critical topics such as the future of digital business, optimizing technology investments, and future-proofing businesses. 

The event's theme, "Securing Network and Data Security in the AI-Driven World," resonated with the current technological landscape, highlighting the potential of AI for both positive and negative outcomes. Distinguished speakers and experts shared insights, ensuring attendees left with valuable takeaways.

The presence of CIOs/CTOs, members of the IT Association (COMPASS), and esteemed panelists from various corporate added a significant value to the event. Networking sessions provided opportunities for industry professionals to exchange experiences and insights. 

The 12th edition of the Eastern India Information Technology Fair was a resounding success, fostering knowledge-sharing, networking, and discussions around crucial ICT trends. The VARINDIA family expresses its heartfelt gratitude to all attendees, speakers, sponsors, and partners for making this event a memorable and enriching experience.

Unmasking the Dark Side of AI

Hari Kishore Kusumakar  
IPS- ADG & IGP Cyber Crime, West Bengal  

There are 80% of you who might have got some messages for some lottery payment, and a lot of people must have fallen for it. In fact, bank fraud is a traditional crime; not actually a very high-tech crime. That is why under-educated people of Jamtara are able to commit such kind of crime. Now people can send 1000s of messages in one click and then at least 10 people will fall for it and that makes the criminal's day. To commit the crime all that is needed is fake IDs and SIMs. Criminals are using AI to procure SIMs and KYC. The government has tightened its KYC regulations somewhat since then, but some people are still able to manage a sizable number of SIM cards using forged identification. A mule account is essentially a bank account that has been taken solely for this illegal activity and is being used by someone else. We are totally dependent on service providers to block URLs.  

Unlocking the Power of Data

Prof. Amlan Chakrabarti, 
Head IT & Technology Innovation Cell, University of Calcutta 

We are at an age where we can pick up data from devices like smart watches, smart phones, smart buildings, smart agriculture and smart homes. To use the data, we must push the data to some infrastructure, and need the processing resources to match the data and generate quite good insights. The industry is driven by analytics. Everywhere we try to take a decision is not our perception, it’s a more data driven decision. When we talk about data and infrastructure, security comes into the topmost position. When we have security, there are channels and side channels. Channels are the pipes by which data can be leaked. Channels and side channels should be prevented. The data processing network is a model which consists of various structures. If it is tweaked, then the behavior of the models will be changed. It can be a very faulty model which can lead to being very dangerous. The data of the authentication itself makes you vulnerable.   

Cutting-Edge Technologies embracing the AI Revolution

Manjit Kumar Nayak  
Director-STPI 

The application of AI is ongoing, and we are all seeing how different industries are developing. Today's businessman's vital infrastructure is technology, which plays a significant role in boosting efficiency in all sectors of optimization. The internet connection has reached village level and transactions are happening over mobile phones. Today technology is used vividly which has a big impact on the economy, so also is threatening. We must be more secure on the network side and cautious while using the applications. Today, in this AI driven world it is having a great impact. But the challenge is how to be secure. Meity has predicted that India can create $1 trillion economic value from Digital Economy by 2025 with half of the opportunity originating from new digital ecosystem. This can spring off in diversified sectors of the economy. The potential is going to increase the growth of the digital economy and the opportunity in digital area.  

Saboo Electronics adapting to Change in a Post-Covid World

Rajesh Saboo  
MD- Saboo Electronics and Past President- COMPASS 

Being in the IT field for 34 years and improving oneself is a challenge in and of itself. After Covid, businesses continue to encounter difficulties every day, sometimes in large scale retail stores or online. We constantly need to evolve and adapt for the better. We must adapt as the times change. Things will change if we don't make any adjustments. In the past, we would simply consider laptops or desktop computers, but these days we also discuss cyber security and data security. Since everything is evolving, we must also improve. COMPASS, also known as the Computer Association for Eastern India, has been around for 30 years. The future is going to be very tough to survive in this field, so we need to plan and change along with it.   

Securing Network and Data in the AI-Driven Era

Dr. Deepak Sahu  
Editor-in-chief, VARINDIA 

Talking about today’s topic Securing Network and Data Security in the AI-Driven World, Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly becoming a part of our everyday lives. It is used in a wide range of applications, from facial recognition to self-driving cars. As AI becomes more pervasive, it is also becoming more important to secure network and data security. 

Allied Telesis, trusted partner for Comprehensive Networking Solutions

Sachin Desai  
SE Manager, Allied Telesis (India & SAARC) 

AMF Security is a security engine that can communicate with multiple outside cybersecurity programmes to find and stop threats. Allied Telesis will provide you with a wide platform as well as configuration assistance, management, and monitoring through our system. The cloud tool AMF, which is located in our cloud, fully controls and keeps an eye on cybersecurity threats from the extra layer.   We have been creating technology for automated network operation. You will need skilled resources, and there is always a potential of human mistake when configuring numerous devices. Skilled resources are needed to eliminate cybersecurity. IOT and OT device optimization is a challenge today. The majority of our cloud-based applications and ISPs are now crucial components. If your ISP connection is lost, then you are out of your network. To address that you should have multi-platform capabilities.  

CP Plus pledges to secure every Home, City, and State

Someswar Chakraborty  
G.M- CP Plus 

Our mission is to reach every home, every state and every city of the nation. We provide a comprehensive integrated surveillance solution for critical infrastructure, customization as per the current security test and upcoming security threats and to reduce response time using combination of products and sensors. Artificial Intelligence can be collaborated with the CCTV surveillance infrastructure and beneficial support. In the surveillance world, AI refers to a simulation of human intelligence in machines that are programmed to think like humans and mimic their actions. In surveillance industry, we very much look upon from artificial intelligence is better planning in this FPS security of public innovation and development of new technology for defense, smooth and fast law enforcement management at the micro level and lesser human intervention.

Panel Discussion Session : Moderated by Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu, VARINDIA - Sourav Das, Rupa & Co., Kripadyuti Sarkar, Ambuja Neotia, Sanjeev Sinha, IPCL, Minal Bhagat, Ensonic Computech, Siddharth Sinha, Simcon Digital MegathermITS

Brain Storming Session on a case study: How to Secure Network and Data Security in the AI-Driven World

Moderated by Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu, Chief Editor-VARINDIA, the panel discussion session witnessed insightful messages from Sourav Das, Group Chief of Digital & IT- Rupa & Co; Kripadyuti Sarkar, Group CIO-Ambuja Neotia; Sanjeev Sinha, President -IT & Digitization-India Power Corporation; Minal Bhagat, Co-founder -Ensonic Computech and Siddharth Sinhal, Cimcon Digital. 

Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu  
Chief Editor-VARINDIA 

“Cybersecurity is more important than ever before, as government and enterprises are increasingly reliant on digital technologies. The increasing sophistication of cyber threats, the growing number of connected devices and the expanding attack surface contribute to the challenge of cyber world. Securing network and data security in the AI-driven world is a complex and challenging task. AI-powered applications and systems are increasingly being used in all aspect of our lives from healthcare to finance to transportation. This increase reliance and AI has led to an increasing risk of cyber-attacks.”   

Sanjeev Sinha  
President -IT & Digitization-India Power Corporation   

“While the risk in the digital world is getting higher and is becoming innovative in nature because of the intensity, the protection has to be one step ahead of it.  When you have a security solution powered by AI, it is a very good way of protecting yourself, because it can foresee and predict some of the malicious things from which you can get protected. But at the same time, it has to be ahead of the risks. So, while risks will become more and more innovative, you will also have to devise more innovative ways to protect yourself.” 

Minal Bhagat  
Co-founder - Ensonic Computech   

“Since I come from the education background, what I have observed is when you talk about AI in education, the National Education Policy (NEP) shares that more and more people need to get skilled in artificial intelligence. In order to counter the challenge that everyone is encountering is to educate the teachers first. The newly introduced NEP ideally talks about enabling the teachers first. If we can teach the teachers initially, I am sure the filtration down will be much faster. So that will be one of the bigger solutions I would look at rather than the challenge itself.”   

Siddharth Sinhal  
Associate Vice President, Cimcon Digital  

“Every data is getting transferred on the cloud. In my company, I transfer 20 millions of data in every ten seconds. I work with a lot of industries and they are all very concerned when it comes to putting their data on cloud. But what they need to be told is that many security tools have come up today which can ensure security of this data and there should not be any apprehension regarding it. This would further challenge them while expanding into AI & ML because all these technologies revolve around data and unless the correct data is given, analysing them will again be a big challenge.”  

 
Sourav Das  
Group Chief of Digital & IT, Rupa & Co. 

“Implementing Artificial Intelligence (AI) is easier said than done, there are a lot that goes into AI. If you look from the supply chain perspective, for example we are looking at 15 brands and within each brand there are so many different products, styles, SKUs and then we are looking at the data for each one of them and how to get meaningful information out of that. If you look at a geographical spread, for example we are looking at more than a lakh retailer where we are looking at secondary sales. All this data will give a meaningful insight. Securing that whole piece is a mammoth task. So, I think the rate at which things are growing in terms of complexity and models, the statistical part of AI is simpler but getting the hands around the overall scheme of things is the bigger challenge. When we are very busy with all these, at times cybersecurity takes a back seat.” 

Kripadyuti Sarkar  
Group CIO-Ambuja Neotia 

“Every day we are encountering 500 AI implementations in real estate, there is innovation in designing or architecture etc. But the problem is the trained AIs are also a challenge because the user community consumes this as a Bible. But we are not sure how they are trained because in the same school we can train a good person and a bad person. With the same set of data by using defective learning tools we can also get bad results. Second, the perimeter of cyber threats increases every day so the security bandwidth is also increasing exponentially. On one hand we have to be cautious about what AI tool we are using and on the other we have to embrace AI as a technology.” 

Key Take-aways: AI is rapidly transforming many industries and aspects of our lives, but it also introduces new security risks. Securing network and data security in the AI-driven world is a complex and challenging task. AI-powered applications and systems are increasingly being used in all aspects of our lives, from healthcare to finance to transportation. This increased reliance on AI has also led to an increased risk of cyberattacks.

AI systems are constantly learning and evolving, making it difficult to develop static security measures that can keep up. Additionally, AI systems are often used to collect and analyze large amounts of data, which can be a valuable target for attackers. And AI systems can be used to generate new and sophisticated cyberattacks that are difficult to detect and defend against.