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Special Report – Cyber-attacks on the Indian

banking sector

Attack on border post leaves 9 police officers dead; army

counter-operations left around 30 Rohingyas dead,

15,000 displaced

Myanmar

REGIONAL SNAPSHOT

st thw November 1 : Bhai Dooj (Diwali) Association not to purchase fuel from oil w November 15 : All-India Petroleum

st marketing companies Dealers' Association to hold nationwide w November 1 : Mokokchung District Truck th protest Owners Association to impose indefinite w November 6 : Chhath Puja

thth'chakka bandh' w November 25 : Foundation day of NDFBw November 10 : Auto and taxi unions plan st th

w November 1 : NC Hills Indigenous Students' to go on a strike in Mumbai w November 26 : Anniversary of 26/11 thForum threatens indefinite NH-54E blockade (2008) Mumbai attacksw November 10 : Sarbat Khalsa in Amritsar

rd ththw November 3 : All-India Petroleum Dealers' w November 28 : ULFA annual protest dayw November 14 : Guru Nanak Jayanti

THE MONTH THAT WAS

} Protests by Maratha community continue in Maharashtra; OBC – Dalit communities together, mount counter protests

} RSS/BJP political party workers' deaths in Kerala and Bengaluru causes localised tensions and protests

} Fire at hospital in Bhubaneshwar kills 21; exposes the lack of fire safety implementation

} Massive data breach in over 19 Indian banks

FORECAST FOR NOVEMBER 2016

} Government's move to introduce Uniform Civil Code could lead to protests by the minority community

} Onset of Northeast monsoon could cause flooding in southern India

} With the onset of Winters, air quality in North India expected to drop; Delhi/NCR likely to be worst hit

} Auto-rickshaw and Taxi union strikes planned in Delhi and Mumbai

EVENT CALENDAR

NAXAL TRACKER ISLAMIC STATE IN SOUTH ASIA

} Arrest of suspected Maoist from NCR highlights their urban operations } 18 Maoists killed in an encounter in Malkangiri district of Odisha} Anti-Maoist forces on alert as reports resurface of Maoists regrouping at 'tri-

junction' of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu

} Islamic State publishes details about the Dhaka attack } Islamic State module in Kerala busted with arrest of six suspects;

reports indicate the individuals planned series of attacks in south India

Security forces continue to crackdown on neo-

JMB (Jamaat-ul Mujahideen Bangladesh) operatives in the country

60 killed in an attack on police training academy in

Quetta; sectarian attacks on Shia community in Karachi

and Quetta

Cabinet approves draft of new anti-terrorism law;

Tamil groups continue to mount opposition to the law

Increased cases of dengue and scrub typhus reported

across the country

Sri LankaBangladesh Pakistan Nepal

5

7 12

November 2016

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

4

18 killed in attack on Shia mosque in Kabul, IS claims

responsibility; Opium production soars by 43%, states an UN report

Maldives Parliament endorses President's decision to quit the

Commonwealth

MaldivesSpotlight: Afghanistan

8 9

15 1716

1 2 3

10

18

11

19

22

29

23 24

30 31

25 26

} State-wise Monthly Risk Ratings – October 2016

INDIA MONTHLY RISK FORECASTNOVEMBER 2016

6

13

20

27

14

21

28

India Monthly Risk Forecast - November 2016 1

he rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl in interests. Their first protest was held in Nashik on rdTKopardi village of Ahmednagar district on July October 3 . The Dalit organisations have also

th13 trigged silent rallies by the Maratha arranged for their own marches. Meanwhile, the community across Maharashtra. Lakhs of Dalit – OBC combined has also started staging silent members of the community have participated in protests across the state, the first of which was held

ththese rallies, which have, so far, been held in most on October 20 in Beed district. The Muslim major cities of Maharashtra, except Mumbai. community has also staged a rally in Mumbra,

Mumbai over its demand for reservation. The Dalit Meanwhile, the Maratha rallies has given rise to a as well as Maratha rallies have been supported by new front of OBC and Dalit communites, who have the Muslim community. Muslims, also demand 5% come together, to counter the resurgence of reservation in education and employment.

between communities in Maharashtra, based on Maratha dominantion as well as block any space caste lines. All the major communities of the state, for Marathas in the existing reservation quota of The real issue of contention between the except the Brahmins, are currently are rallying to the two groups. The Marathas are also demanding communities is the demand for reservation by get their demands met. Demands by one amendments to the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Marathas, and not SC/ST (PoA) Act, as is perceived community counter the ones of the other, thus Act, which the OBC – Dalit groups are strongly widely. According to some statistics, Marathas creating space for political upheaval which could against. constitute around 30% of the state's population, have long-term impact on the state's politics.

while OBCs are 27% of the total population. OBC organizations have started organizing silent Muslims are 10%, while Dalits are about 11% of the marches. The community has said that these total population of Maharashtra. marches do not seek to counter the Maratha mobilization but are to safeguard their own These rallies, have the potential for widening the rift

Protests by Maratha community continue in Maharashtra; OBC – Dalit communities together, mount counter protests

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2India Monthly Risk Forecast - 2016 November

he Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had called for a have continued unabated since; clashes between thTshutdown in Kerala on October 13 to protest the RSS and the CPI(M) have claimed over 300 lives

the murder of a party activist in Kannur, allegedly since 1969. The indifference of the party leaders by CPI-M (Communist Party of India-Marxist) and the strong political as well as ideological members. The state leadership of the BJP claimed rivalries between these two groups, has meant that

ththat the murder which took place on October 12 the cycle of revenge and retribution continues. The happened near the house of the Chief Minister. Central and the State leadership need to step in, for

ensuring that the cycle of political killings in Kerala The murder followed the killing of a 52-year-old stops.CPI-M grassroot leader by suspected RSS activists. Since Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan took over Elsewhere, in Karnataka, a local RSS activist who office, four BJP and three CPI-M workers have was into the real estate and moneylending business

thbeen killed in Kannur district which also happens was hacked to death by two men on October 16 to be the home district of the Chief Minister. After near the Kamaraj Road in Bengaluru. RSS workers the incident, state governor, Justice P. Sadasivam, staged large-scale protests and the police had to stepped in and called on political parties to resolve impose Section 144 in six police station limits in the protests held in the aftermath of these incidents their differences peacefully. city. While the police insisted that the murder was a further disrupts day to day activities in urban areas.

case of personal rivalry, the RSS Bengaluru The Central and the State governments and political Political violence is endemic in Kannur, a major spokesperson claimed that it was part of a series of groups, instead of indulging in a blame game, north Kerala district from where the current CM of attempts to eliminate workers from the should ensure that those responsible for these acts the state hails. Both the BJP and the CPI-M have organizations. are held accountable, and political parties should shown little inclination to end the bloodshed restrain their local activists from hooliganism. involving their cadres. The murders in Kannur date The killings of political workers have the potential to back to the communal clashes of the 1970s and unleash a cycle of violence in Indian cities. The

RSS/BJP political party workers' deaths in Kerala and Bengaluru causes localised tensions and protests


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bout 21 people were killed and 120 injured in was conducted but the changes suggested then Aa major fire at a private hospital in were reportedly not implemented.th

Bhubaneshwar on October 17 . Most of the victims were in the first-floor ICU of the hospital The fire incident is a grim reminder of how hospitals during the incident. The tragedy occurred due to in the country continue to ignore fire safety norms suffocation as the smoke spread in most of the and operate despite violating crucial government wards after the fire and most of the victims who rules and regulations. The Bhubaneshwar fire were on oxygen support, died. The fire which incident came about five years after the Kolkata reportedly started due to short circuit in the AMRI Hospital blaze of 2011, in which 89 people lost dialysis OT in the first floor subsequently spread to their lives. The judicial probe following the AMRI the ICU and other nearby wards. Through the AC incident had recommended that AC-ducts must

in public buildings due to a steady decline in the ducts the poisonous gas spread across the have strong preventive mechanisms where the air

enforcement of urban regulations and building building. As many as seven fire tending vehicles circulation could stop once it detects smoke.

plans. Unless the Centre and State government took more than two hours to bring the blaze under

address the fire risk in medical institutions as a top control. India has a poor record with respect to preventing

order priority such incidents will continue to put the fire accidents. Prevention of fires and emergency

lives of patients at risk. All the fire norms and As per reports, the hospital had lost its response are not high priorities in India, and the

guidelines have been already made, all the accreditation with the National Accreditation Centre looks at it as a municipal function under

concerned authorities have to do is strictly enforce Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH) state governments. The incident also highlights the

them. two months ago due to lack of adherence to lack of adherence to proper procedures to ensure quality standards, but continued to operate. safety norms, both at the part of the hospitals and Earlier, in 2013, a fire safety audit of the hospital government departments. Fire risks have multiplied

Fire at hospital in Bhubaneshwar kills 21; exposes the lack of fire safety implementation


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ard data of 3.2 million customers was stolen The initial investigations have found a malware-th thC induced security breach in the systems of Hitachi between May 25 and July 10 from a network

of a private bank's ATMs managed by a third party Payment Services, which provides ATMs, point of payment services. However, it was only in early sale and other services in India. The investigation September that banks and payments services alleged that the security breach occurred in the providers became aware of the extent of the ATMs of a private bank.breach. As per some reports, the malware infection took about six weeks to detect, The sum of money that appears to have been compromising transactions that took place during fraudulently withdrawn is nearly Rs.1.3 crore. The this period. Banks came across fraudulent worrying point is that it took nearly six months for transactions, in which debit cards were used in the system to officially acknowledge the incidents China and the US for customers who were present and initiate steps to address them. Reserve Bank of in India. In addition, cardholders also detected India and its top officials have been urging bankers

to block some of the bank's e-payment services. similar transactions. Fraudulent withdrawals have for quite some time to give primacy to cyber Banks need to assess their own readiness to mount been reported from 19 banks so far. However, security. The central bank had issued instructions a real cyber defence and incident response to cyber most banks have insisted on the fact that there has on a cyber security framework to be implemented attacks. Government also needs to ensure that not been any reported financial loss from the in banks, which required banks to have a board-cyber security guidelines are strictly implemented, recent attacks Following the incident, banks have approved cyber security policy.for organisations to follow. urged their customers to change the PINs of their

debit cards and some banks have also asked This is not the first cyber-attack to hit the Indian customers to not use other bank ATMs as a banking sector. In early August, a Pakistan hacker precautionary measure. reportedly defaced the website of a large public

sector bank by inserting a malicious page and trying

Massive data breach in over 19 Indian banks



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Political Environment

Internal Security Situation

Extremism &

Terrorism

Civil Unrest

Crime Crime against women

Natural /Man-made Disasters

Pandemics Infrastructure

Emergency Services

State-wise Monthly Risk Ratings – October 2016

High Medium Low

Jammu & Kashmir

Himachal Pradesh

Punjab

Uttarakhand

Uttar Pradesh

Delhi NCR

Haryana

Rajasthan

Bihar

Jharkhand

Chhattisgarh

Odisha

West Bengal

Assam

Meghalaya

Overall Risk

Rating

States



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Political Environment

Internal Security Situation

Extremism &

Terrorism

Civil Unrest

Crime Crime against women

Natural /Man-made Disasters

Pandemics Infrastructure

Emergency Services

State-wise Monthly Risk Ratings – 2016October

High Medium LowOverall

Risk Rating

States

Arunachal Pradesh

Mizoram

Nagaland

Sikkim

Manipur

Tripura

Maharashtra

Goa

Madhya Pradesh

Gujarat

Telangana

Andhra Pradesh

Karnataka

Tamil Nadu

Kerala


thhe union government's stand on Uniform Civil November 20 in Kolkata, against the central TCode (UCC) and triple talaq has attracted government's initiative of ushering in a uniform civil widespread opposition from both the minority code. The conference and protest gathering is likely and political opposition quarters. Minority to see the active participation of Muslim Personal community and religious groups have vociferously Law Board members. The group has also threatened expressed their discontent with the government's to organise a nationwide road blockade on the stand on the issue. In addition to issuing issue. In order to keep up the pressure on the statements criticising the government's move as government, other sporadic protests may also be being polarising, minority groups around the held in other parts of the country in the month of country have initiated signature campaigns to fill November. and sign a proforma introduced by the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIPLMB). The Muslim At present, the Law Commission has asked all United Forum (MUF), an umbrella organisation of national and state political parties to share their India but also the political importance the Muslims all sects of ulemas also organised a public protest views and plans to invite their representatives for hold in Indian politics. UCC has been a political issue meeting at the All-India Majlise-Ittehdaul- interaction on the subject. The panel has sent a since Indian independence. BJP, in its 2014 election Muslimeen (AIMIM) office, in Darussalam, questionnaire on the subject to the parties and manifesto, had promised to draft UCC, and the

th stHyderabad on October 19 . Similar, localised asked them to send their views by November 21 . recent moves by the government seem to be protests have been held in other parts of the working towards this goal. However, given the country too. Even though UCC will affect not only just the Muslim political opposition to UCC, the road will not be easy

community but also northeast tribes, especially for any government to implement UCC. In November, a three-day conference culminating Nagaland and Mizoram, the most dominant voice of in a congregation of clerics and lakhs of people opposition is the Muslim community, given not just from all over the country has been planned on its status of being the largest minority community in

Government's move to introduce Uniform Civil Code could lead to protests by the minority community


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National South India




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hile, the Northeast monsoon (NEM) Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and the union territory of Wmissed its normal date of arrival in the Puducherry, with Tamil Nadu and the city of third week of October this year, weather Chennai particularly hit hard. As a result, more than predictions indicate that the intensity of rains will 500 people were killed in the region, and over 18 pick up pace in November. In the past century, in lakh people were displaced, with the estimate cost about 10 per cent of the years the monsoon set in of damages and losses reportedly ranging in billions only in November. Last year, the monsoon arrived of dollars.

thon October 28 . The period of rainfall between October and December is considered as the According to this year's forecast for the NEM, Northeast Monsoon over Peninsular India. The rainfall over Tamil Nadu is most likely to be normal region, particularly the southeastern states of this year. The forecast states the rainfall is expected vulnerable areas, 118 are in Chennai, 151 in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu, to be within 90-100 per cent of the long period Kanchipuram, and 85 in Nagapattinam.record the majority of their annual rainfall during average (taken for the period from 1951 to 2000), the season. Tamil Nadu depends on NEM for about which for Tamil Nadu is 438.2 mm. Chennai is likely 50 per cent of the annual rainfall. to receive 731 mm of rainfall, which will be a seven

per cent deviation from the average 788 mm. Based Last year, the worst rainfall in Chennai for nearly a on the forecast, a heavy downpour may result in a century had caused massive flooding which led to few incidents of flooding in parts of southern India. a catastrophic loss of life and property. Heavy In Tamil Nadu, A total of 712 highly vulnerable areas, rainfall towards the end of November and in early 1,220 moderately vulnerable areas, 1,113 December affected the whole of the Coromandel vulnerable areas and 949 less vulnerable areas have Coast region of the south Indian states of Tamil been identified in the state. Among the 712 highly

Onset of Northeast monsoon could cause flooding in southern India

MonthlyForecast

National South India




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The MonthThat Was

ir quality in North India, especially in In a sign of things to come, Delhi's air quality index ADelhi/NCR, has been worsening through (AQI), calculated by Central Pollution Control Board October and is expected to get worse in the post- (CPCB) and SAFAR-India, showed a common reading

rdDiwali period and in the coming winter months. of 318 on October 23 . An AQI of more than 300 is Towards the end of October, at least six stations considered 'very poor'. While the city's air quality that monitor particulate matter (PM) 2.5 and 10 in falls to even more hazardous levels during the Delhi recorded readings falling in the 'very poor' winter, it's unusual for levels to record such a rise category. In fact, Delhi's air quality has already this early in the season. breached the hazardous 'red zone' on certain days, this season. Such alarming levels of pollution are detrimental for

not only people suffering from respiratory illnesses As per the System of Air Quality and Weather but also for the rest of the population. High Forecasting And Research's (SAFAR), in the coming concentrations of fine particulate matter, especially weeks, especially after Diwali, air quality is likely to that of 2.5 microns or less in diameter or PM 2.5, get worse. The onset of winter pollution is also which can penetrate deep into the lungs, increases expected to make matters worse, and as the likelihood of asthma, lung cancer, severe conditions begin to get colder, pollution levels in respiratory illness, and heart disease. The presence the city are expected to rise. The weather and cold of particulate matter in air, which is high enough will mean the particulate matter stay closer to the due to consumption of fossil fuel like coal, increases ground. Furthermore, the pollution from crop further in winter due to copious burning of leaves, burning in Haryana and Punjab are yet to gain pace rubber, and garbage in neighbourhoods in North and reach Delhi, thereby adding to the pollution India.levels.

With the onset of winters, air quality in North India expected to drop; Delhi/NCR likely to be worst hit

MonthlyForecast

National South India North India




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The MonthThat Was

axi and auto-rickshaw unions in Mumbai and rickshaw and taxi drivers any social or economic TDelhi are set to reignite their protests against benefits. The protesters have reportedly given the sttheir respective state government's perceived government time until November 21 to ban the

inaction against app-based cab aggregators. In aggregators. Failing which, about 50,000 auto and Mumbai, the taxi and auto-rickshaw unions have taxi drivers will launch a mass agitation. According

ththreatened to go on a strike on November 10 . The to them, in addition to the rally at Ramlila Maidan, unions have demanded that Maharashtra CM the unions also plan to send a group of about 1,000 Devendra Fadnavis should regulate services of auto drivers to Punjab where the AAP is contesting app-based cabs and meet union members to elections to let people know of the injustice being discuss their demands. The unions also want a done to the auto drivers in Delhi.government-based app-service for all taxis and auto rickshaws. If the taxi unions go ahead with the strike,

commuters using public transport could be severely Meanwhile, unions in Delhi have announced that affected.they will hold a mega rally at Ramlila Maidan in November. The unions have accused the AAP government of being in league with taxi aggregating companies, and alleged that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had failed to implement his electoral promises. The protesters accused the Delhi government of allowing the app-based taxi services to violate the law while denying the auto-

Auto-rickshaw and Taxi union strikes planned in Delhi and Mumbai

MonthlyForecast

National Delhi & Mumbai




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The MonthThat Was

stw November 1 :

stw November 1 :

stw November 1 :

rdw November 3 :

thw November 6 :

thw November 10 :

thw November 10 :

thw November 14 :

thw November 15 :

thw November 25 :

thw November 26 :

thw November 28 :

Bhai Dooj (Diwali) Mokokchung District Truck Owners

Association to impose indefinite 'chakka bandh' NC Hills Indigenous Students' Forum

threatens indefinite NH-54E blockade All-India Petroleum Dealers' Association

not to purchase fuel from oil marketing companies Chhath Puja

Auto and taxi unions plan to go on a strike in Mumbai

Sarbat Khalsa in Amritsar Guru Nanak Jayanti All-India Petroleum Dealers' Association

to hold nationwide protest Foundation day of NDFB Anniversary of 26/11 (2008) Mumbai

attacks ULFA annual protest day

MonthlyForecast

National Event CalendarNational

Key DatesOctober 2016

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

5

7 8 9 10

17 18

20 22 23 24 26

14 16

1 2 3 4

19

29 30

6 11 12

13

27 28


15

21 25

31

12


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The MonthThat Was

errorists disguised as police officers attacked a string of attacks in the recent past has raised TShia shrine packed with hundreds of concern. The predominantly Shia Hazaras, one of worshipers in the Afghan capital late on October Afghanistan's largest ethnic minorities, have been

th11 , killing 18 people and wounding dozens. The repeatedly abducted while traveling on buses in the assault on the Kart-e-Sakhi shrine in western Kabul southern part of the country. Until recent months, came on the eve of Ashura, one of the most IS had been confined to its stronghold in eastern solemn holidays in the Shia calendar. Hours later, Nangarhar, but in July this year it claimed twin Afghan forces rushed to the scene of a second bombings that tore through minority Shia Hazara attack at a Shia mosque in the nearby Kart-e-Char protesters in Kabul, killing 84 people in the deadliest neighbourhood of Kabul. The next day, at least 14 attack in the capital since 2001. In 2011 about 80 Shias were killed in a powerful blast at the gate of people were killed and more than 100 wounded the Shia mosque in the centre of Balkh district. The when a suicide bomber struck a gathering of Shias blast came as Islamic State (IS) claimed during Ashura in the heart of Kabul. country, such targeted attacks on the Shia responsibility for the twin attacks in Kabul on the community are expected to rise. previous day. The security environment of Afghanistan continues

to worsen, as Taliban looks to mount its offensive in While sectarian violence targeting the Shia the ongoing insurgency in the country. However, the minority in neighboring Pakistan has increased, Shia community remains the most vulnerable even such assaults in Afghanistan, where most of the in major cities such as Kabul, which are supposed to population belongs to the Sunni branch of Islam, be under firm government control. As Taliban and have remained relatively infrequent. However, a Islamic State look to mount attacks across the

18 killed in attack on Shia mosque in Kabul; IS claims responsibility

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Spotlight:Afghanistan

India Monthly Risk Forecast - 2016 November


Continued....

13


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The MonthThat Was

ccording to a report by the UN Office on Drugs reasons for the increase in cultivation, driven by a Aand Crime (UNODC), opium production in higher opium yield per hectare.Afghanistan has increased by 43% in the past year. The UNODC states that the area used to farm the The crop is widespread in many government-poppy plant, the source of opium, increased by controlled regions, and officials are often accused of 10%, in 2016, from 183,000 to 201,000 hectares. not acting on the growth of illegal poppy farming Afghanistan is the world's largest producer of the and trading. Only 355 hectares (877 acres) of substance, which is the main ingredient in heroin. poppies were eradicated by provincial authorities in Growing opium is a crime in the country, but it is the last year - down more than a 90% since 2015, still a major cash crop for impoverished farming when almost 4,000 hectares were cleared. Seven communities. Afghanistan's production of illicit insurgents and one officer died during attacks on opium is primarily used for the illegal drug trade. eradication teams this year. Seven more people The Taliban also taxes poppy production in areas it were injured.

Despite US investing billions of dollars on counter-controls, which is a major source of income for the narcotics measures, in the past decade, in group's military activities. Helmand province, which has seen a resurgent Afghanistan, there have been few visible effects on Taliban presence, is the single largest producer, with production or cultivation. With the insurgency Cultivation of poppy in Afghanistan has been rising more than 80,000 hectares of poppy cultivation. continuing to pose difficulties to maintain security in the past decade, despite dropping last year due The region was a contested area between the in the country, the issues related to poppy to a drought. The poppy helps in fuelling the Taliban and Nato-led forces, before the latter production are also expected to remain. Taliban insurgency. As per the report, favourable withdrew in 2014. Taliban militants launched a fresh

weather, rising insecurity and a decline in assault on the Helmand regional capital of Lashkar international donor support were the main Gah in early October.

Opium production soars by 43%, states an UN report

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14


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thn October 8 , 2016, in a series of anti- This time as Neo-JMB, which is considered inspired Omilitancy crackdowns, 12 neo-Jama'atul by the ideology of Islamic State (IS). Along with the Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) militants, the Dhaka attacks, in October, Rapid Action Battalion

stgroup held reposnsible for the July 1 Dhaka (RAB) stated that Neo-JMB was involved in last attack, were killed in Gazipur, Tangail and Dhaka year's killing of two foreign nationals, Italian citizen districts. There have been raids conducted by the Tavella Cesare and Japanese national Hoshi Kunio. Bangladeshi security forces successively capturing extremists and recovering weapons and other The born-again terrorist outfit, referred to as Neo-

stmaterial. Since the July 1 , 2016, Gulshan attack, JMB by law enforcers, is considered by the country's around 41 JMB terrorists have been killed and law enforcement agencies as far more radicalized. another 80 have been arrested across Bangladesh The Neo-JMB now claims affiliation to Daesh in different raids. Prominent among those killed (Islamic State) and its ideology, is relatively skilled in significant flows of resources to the group, both were reportedly the group's financier, military modern technology and equipped with firearms, generated at home in Bangladesh and sourced from commander of the northern region, Tamim and can potentially cause greater damage than the Middle East. Ahmed Chowdhury, the alleged mastermind of the old JMB.Gulshan attack, and a military commander (who was also a former Bangladesh army officer). The re-surfaced Neo-JMB mainly consists of tech-

savvy youngsters. Even though Bangladesh's law The Neo-JMB is considered the resurfaced version enforcement agencies have neutralized several of JMB, a local Islamist militant group which hardcore JMB terrorists, significant risks persist, as carried out series of bomb blasts in Bangladesh a the terrorist group continues to attract fresh decade ago. The JMB took about nine years to recruits. The weapons and resources recovered reorganize after crackdown by the government. during the recent raids also suggest that there are

Security forces continue to crackdown on neo-JMB (Jamaat-ul Mujahideen Bangladesh) operatives in the country

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n one of the deadliest terror attacks in Pakistan Despite the IS' limited functional presence in Ithis year, at least 61 security personnel were Pakistan, the Quetta attacks highlight the group's killed, and 165 others were injured as terrorists ability to collaborate and work with local militants stormed a police training centre near Quetta on and militant organisations to mark its presence in

thOctober 24 night. A Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan the region. The group already has a 'Wilayat' (TTP) faction, Tehreek-e-Taliban Karachi (province) established for the Khorasan (Af-Pak) (Hakimullah faction), claimed for the attack. region, and its increasing claims over terrorist However, a day after the attack, Islamic State also attacks could see the group having operational claimed responsibility for the attack. IS said, capabilities in the region, through local terror through the group's Amaq news agency, that the groups, as it currently does in Libya, Nigeria and attack carried out by Islamic State fighters. As per other areas of the globe. IS' collaboration with local the Pakistani security forces, the Al-Alimi faction of sectarian groups such as LeJ in Pakistan could signify the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi militant group, affiliated the group launching more sectarian attacks in violent incidents. Since then, the sectarian attacks with the Pakistani Taliban, carried out the attack. Pakistan, a country already marred by decades of decreased sharply across Pakistan in 2014 and The LeJ spokesperson told the media that the sectarian attacks on minorities. 2015. In these two years, the sectarian incidents group had cooperated with IS to launch the terror and casualties came down to 144 and 484 attack in Quetta. However, the group has claimed Meanwhile, anti-Shia sectarian violence is once respectively. The LeJ had suffered a major blow last that it has no direct ties with IS. again resurging in Pakistan. In October, Lashkar-e- year, when its leader Malik Ishaq was killed in an

Jhangvi (LeJ) Al-Alami, an anti-Shia extremist outfit, alleged police encounter in July 2015. The In August, IS claimed responsibility for an attack on has claimed responsibility for the targeted resurgence of a new faction of LeJ might signify that a gathering of mourners at a hospital in Quetta assassinations of four women of the ethnic Hazara Pakistan may, again, see an increase in sectarian that killed 70 people. However, that attack was Shia community in Quetta and the attack on a Shia attacks directed at the minorities in the country, also claimed by a Pakistani Taliban faction, Jamaat- Imambargah in Karachi. Pakistan witnessed a peak including Shias and Christians. ur-Ahrar. in sectarian violence between 2007 and 2013,

which left 2,714 people dead in as many as 905

60 killed in an attack on police training academy in Quetta; Sectarian attacks on Shia community in Karachi and Quetta

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Pakistan



ost of the month of October witnessed Human Rights Watch expressed its concern that the Mwidespread violence in the Rakhine attacks on the police posts and the counter-province of Myanmar. The latest round of violence operation by security forces would create chaos in started when nine police officers were reportedly western Myanmar. About a million Rohingya live in killed in coordinated attacks by insurgents on the area and are officially stateless, having been posts along the border with Bangladesh on denied citizenship by the Myanmar authorities that

thOctober 9 . While no one claimed responsibility refuse to even use the term Rohingya, saying the for the attack, as per Myanmarese officials, the people are actually Bengalis from Bangladesh. attacks are said to have been carried out by an Western Myanmar and the plight of the Rohingya Islamist group identified as Aqa Mul Mujahidin, received international attention in June 2012 as reportedly backed by foreign Islamists. The attacks more than 300 were killed and hundreds of were carried out near Maungdaw in the thousands were affected by sectarian violence set

remains stressed because of the 2008 Constitution, impoverished western state of Rakhine, off by the rape and killing of a Buddhist woman in drafted by the military, which bans her from holding simmering with tensions between Buddhists and Rakhine State.the office of the President. Muslim Rohingyas. Army's counter-operations

th The latest violence is the worst sectarian problem to began on the following day (October 10 ), in which face the government led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi around 30 Rohingya Muslims were dead and since it took office in March. In September, Aung 15,000 displaced. Rohingya Muslims have also San Suu Kyi formed an advisory commission on stated that the soldiers raped or sexually assaulted Rakhine State under the chairmanship of the former dozens of women in a remote village in Rakhine United Nations secretary general, Kofi Annan. province. However, Suu Kyi's relationship with the Army

Attack on border post leaves nine police officers dead; army counter-operations left around 30 Rohingyas dead, 15,000 displaced

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Bangladesh Sri Lanka Nepal Maldives

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Myanmar



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he Sri Lankan cabinet approved the draft of a with terrorism. Tnew counter-terrorism law to replace a 37-year old act. The new law will replace the current The draft law states that a detainee under the new Prevention of Terrorism Act that was enacted in law (as under the PTA) would not be entitled to legal 1979, then in the face of growing Tamil separatist assistance before or during the recording of the first militancy. According to the government, the new statement to the police. Secondly, any statement Counter Terrorism Act is aimed at dealing with made to a police officer not below the rank of a new forms of transnational violence. Officials state Superintendent of Police is admissible as evidence that the new law is needed to ensure that the in a court of law. country is not used as a recruiting ground or for

the security agencies. TNA members fear that the other activities of international terrorists. Tamil and human rights groups have pointed to the new law will retain some of the features like According to political experts, the Sri Lankan alleged draconian nature of the PTA. During the preventive detention for indefinite periods and situation has undergone a change after the war LTTE's over three-decades long civil war for a legal acceptance of confessions made to police ended, and the rules which existed during the war separate Tamil state, many LTTE activists were held officers in the first instance.cannot continue to be applied now. under the PTA. Then, the international rights

groups had urged the Sri Lankan government to In September, over 20 Tamil political prisoners held Moreover, Sri Lanka has pledged to the UN Human repeal the PTA and release those held under its in prisons across Sri Lanka began a hunger strike, Rights Council, in September – October 2015, that provisions. Currently, the Tamil National Alliance protesting against their detention under the anti-it will repeal the PTA and replace it with a law (TNA) has stated that the proposed new law to terror law. Several international bodies have earlier which is in tune with international best practices replace the older Prevention of Terrorism Act pressurized the Sri Lankan government to repeal on anti-terror legislation. As per the country's continues with most of the controversial provisions the Prevention of Terrorism Act in order to comply Prime Minister, the new law is in full compliance of the earlier one. The TNA spokesperson claimed with human rights standards.with Sri Lanka's human rights obligations, while that the government rejected the amendments

having adequate provisions to combat and deal proposed by the law commission after consulting

Cabinet approves draft of new anti-terrorism law; Tamil groups continue to mount opposition to the law

Sri Lanka



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he first case of dengue, in last two years, was found in 38 districts of Nepal.Tconfirmed in Jhapa district of eastern Nepal, after a 52-year old was diagnosed with the At least 220 people in Chitwan district tested disease. Two years ago the district was listed as a positive for dengue and 80 percent of the cases high-risk zone for dengue when, over a dozen were reported from the Ratnanagar. Meanwhile, 12 people had been infected with the virus mainly in new cases of dengue were reported in Kathmandu.Damak, while two others had died in Kakarbhitta area. The health officials in the district cautioned It is feared that due to under-reporting the number the public against the possible spread of the of infected people could be atleast two or three disease. The municipality started a publicity times the reported numbers. campaign through the local media urging people to drain out any small, stagnant water bodies and Dengue infections first appeared in Nepal nearly a potholes in their vicinity that could be breeding decade ago and there was an epidemic in 2010. The grounds for the mosquitoes. health service department lacks dedicated units to

quickly identify and treat dengue as well as other Meanwhile. a total of ten people have died so far monsoon-related diseases like typhoid and cholera. of scrub typhus in the past six months across the The Kathmandu Valley, the most populated region country, of which three were from Chitwan in Nepal, is considered a high-risk area for dengue district. According to the data available with the due to its shoddy waste disposal system and many Epidemiology and Disease Control Division (EDCD) pockets of stagnant water, which are highly suitable from different districts during mid-April to mid- breeding grounds for Aedes mosquito, which October 2016, 385 cases of scrub typhus have carries dengue virus. been reported. Scrub typhus infection has been

Increased cases of dengue and scrub typhus reported across the country

Nepal



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he Maldives has announced it will leave the The Maldives has benefited in trade, commerce, TCommonwealth after mounting pressure travel, medicine, education, sports and youth from the 53-nation group over corruption and development through Commonwealth assistance deteriorating human rights in the Indian Ocean said the opposition. Some MPs called on the state. The People's Majlis, the country's government to reconsider the decision to end the Parliament, endorsed President Abdulla Yameen's Maldives' 34-year membership of the 53-member decision for the Maldives to quit the intergovernmental organisation. Several lawmakers Commonwealth over alleged unfair treatment, also criticised the speaker for tabling the debate interference in domestic affairs, and threats to after the decision to leave the Commonwealth was sovereignty and independence. MPs voted 39-19 announced.to support the president's executive decision. The

The vote took place at the time of deep political move followed a warning by the Commonwealth Pro-government Mps backed the president's instability not only between the government and Ministerial Action Group that the Maldives could decision and reiterated accusations of undue opposition but also internally in the ruling party, be suspended in March 2017 if a political crisis interference in domestic affairs, blaming Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM). The PPM is triggered by the jailing of opposition leaders last international censure that the Maldives is facing on battling an internal split between the current year remains unresolved. lobbying efforts by exiled opposition leaders.President Yameen and his half-brother and former President, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. The political MPs first debated the question of exiting the The Commonwealth exit was widely criticised both instability and given that the current government Commonwealth when Yameen sought the at home and abroad. The governments of the UK has shown no genuine effort to reconcile with the parliament's counsel in July last year. The debate and Australia urged the president to reconsider the

th opposition, the country may be slipping back to its resumed more than a year later at the October 18 decision whilst civil society groups called on the authoritarian past. Maldives' decision to leave the sitting of parliament, five days after the foreign government to address criticism of its human rights Commonwealth could lead to further political minister and attorney general announced the record.instability in the country. decision to leave.

Maldives Parliament endorses President's decision to quit the Commonwealth

Maldives



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October Events & Incidents

st§October 1 – Chhattisgarh:

st§October 1 – Bihar:

st§October 1 – Jharkhand:

nd§October 2 – Chhattisgarh:

th§October 7 – Jharkhand:

th§October 9 – Karnataka:


th§October 10 – Maharashtra:

A group of nearly 20-25 armed Maoists entered Hurrapinjori village in Amabeda region, and dragged three villagers whose bodies were later discovered. They were reportedly killed as they were suspicion of being 'police informers'.

Train services on Raxaul-Sitamarhi route were halted for over 12 hours following recovery of an IED on the railway track near Ghorasahan railway station of the East Central Railway's Raxaul-Darbhanga section in East Champaran. As per the police, the IED was probably planted by the CPI-Maoist.

Security dorces arrested four PLFI cadres from forests under Murhu Police Station in Khunti district.

Chhattisgarh Police arrested six Maoists in a raid in Bijapur district, while 25 Maoists, including six women, surrendered before the Police and the Forests Minister in the district.

A Maoist, accused of killing Amarjeet Balihar, SP of Pakur District, has been arrested along with two of his associates in Dumka district.

Security forces of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu decided to launch a joint operation, following specific intelligence information that CPI-Maoist had increasingly been using the forest tri-junction of the southern states as a safe haven.

CPI-Maoist cadres blew up railway tracks near Dumri Vihar of th thGomia block in Bokaro district on two consecutive days of October 10 and 11 .

In a show of solidarity to Kashmiri protesters demanding the right to self-determination, the CPI-Maoist in Chandrapur district called for a bandh on

th thOctober 10 and 11 .



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th§October 11 – Chhattisgarh: A police jawan was killed by Maoists in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district.

Around 18 CPI-Maoist, including a woman, surrendered before Sheohar administration in the presence of 15,000 civilians at Belwa Ghat on the banks of the Bagmati in Sheohar district.

Suspected PLFI cadres blew up two concrete sleepers of tracks detonating IED between Khelari and McCluskieganj stations in Ranchi district.

The Uttar Pradesh Police busted a gang of Maoists by arresting 10 of them who were reportedly planning some incidents in the Delhi-NCR region. The arrested Naxals were active in eastern UP and adjoining parts of Bihar and had made Hindon near Noida as their base.

One suspected member of the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist) was killed during an exchange of fire with the security forces in Bastar region of Chhattisgarh.

24 members of the banned CPI (Maoist) were killed in an encounter, in a joint operation of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha police, near Jantri in Malkangiri district of Odisha.

A Maoist leader, who was carrying Rs five lakh reward on his head, has surrendered before the Jharkhand Director General of Police in Ranchi. He was a sub-zonal commander of the outfit and member of its Bihar-Jharkhand Special Area Committee.

A villager, who had served as Special Police Officer (SPO) during the Salwa Judum movement in Bastar, has been allegedly killed by Maoists in the Sukma district.

th§October 15 – Bihar:


th§October 16 – Delhi-NCR:

th§October 17 – Chhattisgarh:

th§October 24 – Odisha:


th§October 26 – Chhattisgarh:

October Events & Incidents





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24 Maoists killed in an encounter with security forces in Malkangiri district of Odisha

24 Maoists were killed in an encounter, in a joint operation of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha police, near Jantri in Malkangiri district of Odisha. The encounter took place a thfew kilometres away from the border with Andhra Pradesh, in the early hours of October 24 . Among the dead were around seven women Maoist cadres. This is the

second major encounter and the biggest in Malkangiri district of Odisha, and one of the major incidents in the Andhra-Odisha border area. Thirteen Maoists were killed in an encounter with the police in September 2013 in Podia block in Malkangiri district.

The operations by the security forces marked the end of the Maoist leadership in the strategically important AOB (Andhra-Odisha Border) zone. The AOB was established with the aim to revive the Maoist movement in Andhra Pradesh as well as to be used as a sanctuary for the group's top leaders. Among the 24 Maoists killed were the zone's top leaders including the east division secretary of the CPI (Maoist), the military head of the AOB zone, and the son of top CPI (Maoist) leader and its central committee member, Ramakrishna alias RK. As per reports, Ramakrishna managed to escape.

Previously, the biggest leader to die in a gunfight with security forces was Koteswar Rao alias Kishenji, whose death in November 2011 dealt a body blow to the Maoist armed struggle in West Bengal. The level of violence has fallen in recent years, and the Maoists have lost hundreds of fighters to desertions and operations by the security forces. However, the rebels remain capable of staging regular ambush attacks on security forces in several states. A year before Kishenji's death, Maoists killed 75 CRPF personnel and state policemen in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada. Prior to the Malkangiri encounter, 10 CRPF men died during a counter-insurgency operation in the jungles of Bihar's Aurangabad district this July.

Arrest of suspected Maoists from NCR region highlights the group's urban operations

The Uttar Pradesh Police busted a gang of alleged Maoists by arresting 10 of them who were reportedly planning some incidents in the Delhi-NCR region and recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition. The arrested Naxals were active in eastern UP and adjoining parts of Bihar and had made Noida their base. They had rented two

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flats and posed as property dealers. As per the police, the group had plans to rob ATMs and carry out kidnapping-for-ransom in the Delhi – NCR region. In the five-decade history of the Maoist struggle, this would be the first instance of Naxals planning to loot an ATM. In the past, there have been reports of Maoist being arrested from major urban/metro areas of India, but this is the first instance of Maoists allegedly planning to undertake criminal activities outside their core areas of operation in the 'red corridor'. Urban areas for Maoists are not areas of domination as in say the tribal areas of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh or Odisha, but are areas the group's members can use to raise funds as well as hide from the ongoing operations in the Maoist-affected regions of the country.

Anti-Maoist forces on alert as reports resurface of Maoists regrouping at 'tri-junction' of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu

As reports resurface of Maoists regrouping at the Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu tri-junction, anti-Maoist forces in the region have been put on alert. The Inspector-General of Police (Southern Range) has stated that Maoists were planning to create a 'red corridor' from Jharkhand to Wayanad in Kerala. Earlier, in October 2015, the Karnataka police had arrested a Kerala-based businessman in Dakshina Kanna district for allegedly supplying explosive materials to Maoists. There have been long-standing reports of supply of arms and ammunition to Naxals through the porous Karnataka-Kerala border in the coastal districts. However, except for a few pamphlets emerging now and then, the Maoist movement in Karnataka has remained low-key.

According to certain reports, the strength of the naxals in Karnataka is low; however, recent reports indicate that the group may be reorganizing itself. There have been intelligence reports that the Naxals are keen on building a southern corridor. Maoists have been reportedly trying to develop a tri-junction of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as a suitable operational base. In Karnataka, there were around four groups - Tunga, Bhadra, Netra and Varahi. There are indications that these four Maoist groups have combined into one and are also part of the Western Ghat Special Zonal Committee, and that the committee had made its presence in Kerala.

Naxal trends



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Afghanistan

Pakistan

India

Bangladesh

th§October 4 : Islamic State's Khorasan province claimed that the group had killed a US soldier and three Afghan troops in an IED attack in the Achin district of the eastern

province of Nangarhar. th

§October 11 : A Shia shrine in Kabul attacked by gunmen, killing at least 18 people. Islamic State claims responsibility for the attack. th

§October 25 : Fighters linked to the Islamic State militant group abducted and killed around 30 civilians, including children, north of Firoz Koh, the capital of Ghor province. The local government called it a revenge attack after a local IS commander was killed, earlier that day.

th§October 6 : Two members of IS, who were reportedly plotting attacks on Pakistan Army's buildings and other security installations, were arrested in Lahore.

th§October 19 : Police arrested two men suspected of distributing pamphlets for IS, following a raid in the northwestern city of Peshawar.

rd§October 23 : Islamic State claimed the killing of an intelligence officer in Charsadda near Peshawar.

th§October 25 : At least 60 killed and over 100 injured in an attack on police training academy in Quetta; Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.

st§October 1 : NIA arrested six individuals from Kerala for allegedly plotting terror attacks in the country.

th§October 6 : National Investigation Agency has arrested an alleged Islamic State operative, Subahani Haji Moideen, from Tamil Nadu, who had gone to Iraq last year and

fought for IS in the city of Mosul.rd

§October 23 : Jammu & Kashmir government accorded sanction to prosecute nine men for raising Islamic State flag in Srinagar two years ago.

th§October 8 : Bangladesh police raided three houses outside the capital Dhaka, killing at least 11 suspected Islamic militants. Those killed were members of Jamaatul

Mujahedeen Bangladesh (JMB). th

§October 8 : The head of a JMB, who was accused of planning the deadly Dhaka café attack in July, died while trying to escape arrest. He had jumped from the fifth floor of a building on the outskirts of Dhaka during a raid by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB).

Islamic State South Asia Tracker – October 2016

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NaxalTracker

he Islamic State published an article in its Ahmed Chowdhury (also known as Abu Bakar al- and articles in regional languages and its activities English magazine, Rumiyah, specifying Hanif) who is believed to be the mastermind behind are only likely to increase in the near future.

stTdetails related to the July 1 terrorist attack the Dhaka Café attack has also appeared in the IS at the Holey Artisan Bakery café in Dhaka. In the magazine. He was killed in an encounter with article, the terrorist organization explained why Bangladeshi Police in September 2016. Meanwhile, the café in Dhaka was selected as a target. The Dabiq, the IS's propaganda magazine, published an article stated that the restaurant was chosen interview of al-Hanif and referred to him as IS's chief because it was frequented by the citizens of in Bangladesh. In the last ten months' law 'crusader countries and kafir nations.' An enforcement agencies in Bangladesh have killed infographic published in the magazine mentioned more than 30 members of the Neo-JMB. that the IS has carried out 24 attacks in Bangladesh since last September and the victims include IS-style rhetoric against minorities and foreigners foreigners, non-Muslim and non-Sunni preachers, and the use of horrifying violence are being used to law enforcers and a university professor. influence and recruit Bangladeshi militants. The

simmering tensions between the government and Bangladesh's government has consistently denied the Islamist organisations have also lent radicalised that militant groups such as Islamic State operate groups an opportunity to drive their agenda and in the country. Reports over the last two months find recruits. Foreign intelligence agencies have suggested that the domestic militant group Neo- already warned that terrorists linked to the Islamic Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (Neo-JMB), State are reportedly planning to ramp up activities considered responsible for the Dhaka attack, has in Bangladesh. The Islamic State has already started links to the IS. The leader of the group Tamim making inroads into South Asia by releasing videos

Islamic State Report for Bangladesh

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NaxalTracker

thhe National Investigation Agency arrested 5 ; he was reportedly planning to carry out lone Kerala and terror groups such as IS are being six men in Kerala earlier in early October on wolf attacks in India. continuing monitored by Indian intelligence Tallegations of planning terrorist attacks and agencies, so as to avoid an untoward incident in the

having links to the Islamic State. The suspects The arrest of the six men with terror links in Kerala country. reportedly confessed that they planned to target represents a worrying trend as earlier 21 individuals high court judges, a senior police officer, and a BJP from the state had gone missing and were leader. They had also planned to execute an attack suspected to have joined IS' operations in Iraq and at a convention of all religions in Kochi in the Syria. The influence of propaganda groups and previous month, however, the venue of the pages on social media appears to be one of the convention was changed after central intelligence primary cause behind the radicalization of young agencies alerted the organisers. men in South India. There are several Facebook

pages and accounts that propagate the IS's Following this arrest, intelligence services of India, messages in Malayalam. There was a Malayalam Afghanistan and the United Arab Emirates have blog, Muhajir, that had at least 40 articles on issues been looking for Sajeer Mangalachari Abdullah such as the life in 'Caliphate' (in Syria and Iraq) and from Kozikode in Kerala. Abdullah is believed to the “responsibility” of Muslims to fight for 'Caliph' occupy a key position in a network of recruiters Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the IS. routing Indian jihad volunteers to the Islamic State in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province which has its As per the NIA, several educated Muslim youths capital in Jalalabad. Meanwhile, a 31-year-old, from Kerala, who were working in Gulf countries, who was trained by IS's military wing for three are known to have strong links with IS terror months, was arrested from Tamil Nadu on October networks. The terror links between youths from

Islamic State Report for India

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Introduction

What is the impact?

What happened?

became aware of the extent of the breach. As per remaining were from the RuPay, according to the some reports, the malware infection took about six NPCI. Visa and MasterCard have stated that their weeks to detect, compromising transactions that own networks were not compromised. Both YES State Bank of India, India's largest bank, on

th took place during this period. Banks came across Bank and Hitachi claim there was no breach or October 19 , stated that it had blocked close to six fraudulent transactions, in which debit cards were compromise at their end. The breach, according to lakh debit cards following a malware-related used in China and the US for customers who were initial investigations, has mainly affected the security breach in a non-SBI ATM network. Several present in India. In addition, cardholders also magnetic strip ATM cards.other banks, such as Axis Bank, HDFC Bank and detected similar transactions. Subsequently, banks ICICI Bank also admitted to being victims of similar lodged complaint to the National Payments cyber attacks. Due to the massive data breach, Corporation of India (NPCI), which has oversight Indian banks have decided to either replace or over retail payments systems in India. Fraudulent request users to change the security codes of as This is one of the biggest data breaches in the withdrawals have been reported from 19 banks so many as 3.2 million debit cards. However, in country. far.certain cases banks have decided blocked the §Around 3.2 million cards issued by Indian banks

cards or issue fresh ones. are to replaced, or their holders asked to change NPCI investigations found a malware-induced their PINs. security breach in the systems of Hitachi Payment §According to NPCI investigations, 90 ATMs have Services, which provides ATMs, point of sale and been compromised, and at least 641 customers other services in India. The investigation alleged across 19 banks have lost Rs 1.3 crore.Card data of 3.2 million customers was stolen that the security breach occurred in the ATMs of a

th §SBI will replace about 6,25,000 debit cards as a between May 25th and July 10 from a network of particular private bank. precaution, and customers will be compensated Yes Bank ATMs managed by Hitachi Payment for losses, estimated to be around Rs 10 lakhs to Services. However, it was only in early September Of the 3.2 million cards involved, over 2.6 million Rs 12 lakhs.that banks and payments services providers belonged to MasterCard and Visa, and the

Special Report – Cyber-attacks on the Indian banking sector

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The number of cards affected by the breach may customers or other banks. State Bank of India seem small, as it the impact is on about 0.5% of the would replace the cards affected by the malware. 712.39 million cards issued by Indian banks till Meanwhile, Axis Bank has said that while some The affected banks, NPCI, Visa, MasterCard, and August 2016. However, the potential losses could cards have been replaced, several customers have Hitachi Payment Services have called for a forensic still be significant, if a large number of them are been asked to change their security codes as well. probe by SISA Information Security. In addition, the exposed to this fraud. However, at the present Meanwhile, RBI has advised banks to review funds Indian Government has sought a detailed report juncture, there is no way of knowing the exact in their bank's (overseas) nostro accounts, and carry from banks and RBI on the debit card fraud. The extent of the damage caused, until the out hourly reconciliation of payment emails by council of Payment Card Industry Data Security investigations are completed. comparing outward messages with SWIFT Standard (PCIDSS), an international body that sets

confirmations. In addition, the RBI has revised its data security standards, has also ordered a forensic rules for payment companies to incorporate a audit of the data breach, which is expected to be provision to impose a penalty ranging between Rs 5 concluded by the end of October.lakh to Rs 1 crore for non-compliance or

Malware is malicious software including viruses, contravention of the Payments Act. As per the initial report of CERT-In, submitted on worms, Trojans, ransomware, spyware and other thOctober 19 , CERT-In, in July 2016, had sent an alert programmes that damages computer systems at Significantly, RBI has reportedly instructed banks to on planned cyber attacks on banks' information ATMs or bank servers, and allows fraudsters to th th upgrade the role of the CISO (chief information infrastructure. Later, on August 12 and 24 , it had access confidential debit card data. In the recent security officer) from an 'operational level' to a alerted banks about backdoor Trojans that steal data breach, swiping a card at an allegedly 'strategic level'. The country's central bank has also credentials of users and also stated about advanced compromised ATM allowed the data on the card to instructed banks to implement a security policy targeted attacks, along with the indicators of be transmitted to the fraudsters, who then enlisting their strategy on combating cyber threats, compromise for the banks to take action. misused it for fraudulent transactions. and spelling out tangible cyber hygiene measures,

which are approved by their respective boards.Some banks are looking to refund money to

What is being done now?

What is a malware attack?


ExpertSpeak




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ExpertSpeak

Analysis the SWIFT network. computers at the Bombay Stock Exchange, which were then identified, separated, and quarantined

Indian banks, when compared to say US banks, have immediately. A bank runs multiple servers that store enormous created additional layers of security for users of amount of information and details of various debit and credit cards. In the US, it is easier to use a The RBI had already, earlier this year, instructed operations such as credit cards, ATMs, real time credit card but in India there are another levels of banks to upgrade their debit cards into chip-based gross settlements, ATMs and SWIFT (the global security such as OTP (One Time Password) or EMV cards, which have added layers of security. The financial messaging service banks use to move another system of validation. However, despite the RBI also had issued instructions on a cyber security funds), among others. Over the past few years, security levels, malware attacks, such as the recent framework to be implemented in banks, which banks have been fighting cyber attacks like one to Indian banks, remain a high possibility. required banks to have a board-approved cyber 'distributed denial of service' (or DDoS),

security policy.considered the most common type of cyber attack The recent attack on Indian banks however, is not on financial institutions, worldwide. According to the first to hit the Indian banking sector. In one While most banks have insisted on the fact that cyber experts, several of these attacks are the instance, in early August, a Pakistan hacker there has not been any reported financial loss from work of Chinese or East European hackers. reportedly defaced the website of a large public the recent attacks, cyber security experts believe sector bank by inserting a malicious page and trying that the level of preparedness for cyber crime in One such major breach this year was the one on to block some of the bank's e-payment services. A India is still basic and companies need to improve Bangladesh Bank. Earlier this year, around $81 month prior, in July, another state-run bank's their response and detection capabilities. A recent million was stolen from the Bangladesh Central offshore account was breached in a cyber attack, survey by Assocham and PwC found that frauds in Bank's account with the Federal Reserve Bank of however, the money trail was traced and the the financial sector caused $20 billion in direct New York, in one of the biggest-ever cyber heists. movement of funds was blocked. Separately, losses, annually. The attack on Bangladesh Bank was done through software viruses were also found in three personal a Trojan Horse, and instructions were issued via


§Check for any visible additional devices attached Banks need to assess their own readiness to to the ATM. mount a real cyber defence and incident response

§Inform the bank immediately in case the debit to cyber attacks. The only option banks have is to card is lost or stolen, or if an unknown transaction mitigate the effects of cyber attacks as there is no is made on the card. full proof solution to stop such attacks.

§Do not write the PIN number on the card or disclose it to anyone.

§Recommended not to use public WiFi for financial transactions.

§In respect to the current data breach, banks have §Do not take help from strangers or let anyone else instructed consumers to use ATMs associated handle your card. only with their banks.

§Always keep the PIN number secure and regularly change your PIN.

§Activate SMS alert for your debit card transactions and also regularly check your SMS alerts and bank statements for any unusual transactions.

§Ensure bank has your current mobile number so as to get alerts for transactions.

§Always be alert for any strangers around the ATM.

Recommendations


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Pallavi is the Team Lead with MitKat Advisory Services’ Information Services practice. She holds a MA in International Studies and Diplomacy from SOAS, London, and has worked with government & research organisations.

- Pallavi Ade ,

MitKat Advisory Services

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Mumbai

511 Ascot Center, Near Hilton Hotel,

Andheri (E)Mumbai – 400 099+91 22 2839 1243

Delhi NCR

Suite# 009, 4th Floor,Time Square,

Sushant Lok – 1Gurgaon – 122 002+91 124 455 9200

Bengaluru

127, 2nd Cross, 6th Block,

Koramangala,Bengaluru – 560 095

+91 80 255 03300

Singapore

101, Cecil Street, #23-12,

Tong Eng Building, Singapore - 069 533

+65 8171 7554

Offices

Representative Offices

Pune Kolkata Baroda Patna

www.mitkatadvisory.com


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