{"id":83864,"date":"2024-11-25T21:55:31","date_gmt":"2024-11-25T16:25:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/?p=83864"},"modified":"2024-11-25T21:55:31","modified_gmt":"2024-11-25T16:25:31","slug":"jk-govt-unveils-protocol-for-handling-confidential-information","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/2024\/11\/25\/jk-govt-unveils-protocol-for-handling-confidential-information\/","title":{"rendered":"J&K Govt unveils protocol for handling confidential information"},"content":{"rendered":"

Officials told not to share ‘top secret’ ‘secret’ information through platforms like Whatsapp, Gmail; Keep smartphones outside meeting room while discussing confidential information<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Srinagar, Nov 25 (KNO): In a significant move, the Jammu & Kashmir Government has told its officers that \u201ctop secret\u201d and \u201csecret\u201d information shouldn\u2019t be shared over internet and smart phone should be deposited outside the meeting room while discussing classified information.<\/p>\n

In a circular, a copy of which is in possession of news agency\u2014Kashmir News Observer (KNO), the government has expressed concern over \u201cincreasing trend among officers and officials to use third-party tools such as WhatsApp, Gmail, and other similar platforms for transmitting sensitive, secret, and confidential information\u201d.<\/p>\n

This practice, as per the circular, poses significant risks to the integrity and security of the information being communicated.<\/p>\n

\u201cUsing third-party communication tools can lead to several potential issues including unauthorized access, data breaches. and leaks of confidential information,\u201d the government said, adding that platforms are not specifically designed to handle classified or sensitive information, and their security protocols may not meet the stringent standards required for official communications.<\/p>\n

In its guidelines\/ protocol for sharing sensitive information, the government said that classified information falls under the four categories: TOP Secret, Secret, Confidential and Restricted.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe \u201cTop Secret\u201d and \u201cSecret\u201d document shall not be shared over the internet,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

As per National Information Security & Policy Guidelines(NISPG), the \u201cTop Secret\u201d and \u201cSecret\u201d information shall be shared only in a closed network with leased line connectivity where SAG grade encryption mechanism is deployed.<\/p>\n

It, however, said \u201cConfidential\u201d and \u201cRestricted\u201d information can be shared on internet through networks that have deployed commercial AES 256-bit encryption.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe use of government email (NIC email) facility or government instant messaging platforms (such as CDAC’s Samvad, NIC’s Sandesh etc.) is strongly recommended for the communication of \u201cConfidential\u201d and \u201cRestricted\u201d information,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

The government said that care should be taken during the classification of information, saying that information that deserves a \u201cTop Secret\u201d\/ \u201cSecret\u201d classification shall not be downgraded to \u201cConfidential\u201d\/ \u201cRestricted\u201d for the purpose of sharing.<\/p>\n

It said that digital assistant Devices such as Amazon’s Echo, Apple’s HomePod, Google Home, etc. should be kept out of the office during discussions on classified issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cFurther Digital Assistants (such as Alexa, Siri, etc.) should be turned off during official meetings in the office used by employee. Smart phones should be deposited outside the meeting room when discussing classified information,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

The government said that \u201cTop Secret\u201d\/ \u201cSecret\u201d information shall not be shared during the video conference meetings. \u201cRegarding Video Conferencing (VC) for official purposes, only Government VC solutions offered by CDAC, CDOT and NIC may be used. Meeting ID and passwords should only be shared with authorized participants. For enhanced security, the \u2018Waiting Room\u2019 facility and prior registration of the participants may be utilized. Even then, \u201cTop Secret\u201d\/ \u201cSecret\u201d information shall not be shared during the VC meetings,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

The government said the departments must deploy proper firewalls and white-list of IP addresses in the context of e- Office.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe e-Office server should be accessed through a Virtual Private Network (VPN) for enhanced security. Departments may ensure that only authorized employees\/personnel are allowed to access to the e-Office system. However, \u201cTop secret\u201d\/\u201dSecret\u201d information shall be shared over the e-Office system only with leased line closed network and SAG grade encryption mechanism,\u201d the government said.<\/p>\n

According to the circular, officials working from home should use security-hardened electronic devices (such as Laptops, Desktops, etc.) connected to office servers via a VPN and Firewall setup.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is important to note that \u201cTop Secret\u201d and \u201cSecret\u201d information should not be shared in a work-from-home’ environment,\u201d it said\u2014(KNO)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Officials told not to share ‘top secret’ ‘secret’ information through platforms like Whatsapp, Gmail; Keep smartphones outside meeting room while discussing confidential information   Srinagar, Nov 25 (KNO): In a significant move, the Jammu & Kashmir Government has told its officers that “top secret” and “secret” information shouldn’t be shared over internet and smart phone […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":83865,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-83864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kashmir"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83864"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83864\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":83866,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83864\/revisions\/83866"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/83865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}