SBI launches 'CyRIS', its cybersecurity Centre of Excellence, in Mumbai

30 October 2026 · English International

Topics: International, Science, Technology & Indices · 30 October 2026 Current Affairs (UPSC / TNPSC / SSC / RRB)

News

Department of Financial Services Secretary Sanjay Lohiya inaugurated 'CyRIS', the State Bank of India's (SBI) cybersecurity Centre of Excellence, in Mumbai on 26 October 2026, in the presence of SBI Chairman Challa Sreenivasulu Setty. Bringing cyber policy, a cyber academy, research and innovation, threat intelligence and cyber defence onto one platform, it rests on three pillars – THINK, INNOVATE and DEFEND. Focus areas include digital forensics, malware analysis, ethical hacking, fraud analytics, AI security and quantum-safe technologies.

Key facts

Background

• Legal framework: under Section 70A of the IT Act 2000, the national nodal agency for protecting Critical Information Infrastructure (CII – banking, power, telecom etc.) is NCIIPC, a unit of the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO); under Section 70B, CERT-In is the national agency for responding to cyber-security incidents. The Home Ministry's I4C coordinates action on cybercrime; complaint helpline 1930.
• Technology: 'ransomware' encrypts data and demands payment to release it (e.g. 'WannaCry', 2017); 'phishing' steals passwords via fake e-mails/links. Future quantum computers (Shor's algorithm) could break today's public-key encryption such as RSA; the US NIST released 'quantum-safe' (post-quantum) encryption standards in August 2024.
• Banking history: SBI is India's largest public sector bank; formed from the Imperial Bank on 1 July 1955; HQ Mumbai. The Department of Financial Services (DFS), under the Union Finance Ministry, oversees public sector banks and insurers.

Tamil Nadu link: the 'Tamil Nadu State Cyber Crime Coordination Centre' (TN-S4C), the State counterpart of the Centre's I4C, was set up in August 2026 at the Cyber Crime Wing headquarters in Chennai – its State Cyber Command Centre runs the 1930 helpline, and its State Cyber Crime Investigation Centre handles ransomware and crypto crimes. 'Tamil Nadu Cyber Security Policy 2.0' for government departments was released in September 2024 (first policy 2020).

Source: Fintech Biz News, Hello Banker, 27 Oct 2026; Digital Terminal, 28 Oct 2026; DT Next (TN-S4C, Aug 2026); NCIIPC website

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