- State-Sponsored Cyber Attacks –
- Recently, Apple Inc. has sent notification to individuals, including opposition leaders and journalists, about “State-Sponsored Attackers who are remotely trying to compromise” their iPhones.
- This is the second time that Opposition politicians and civil society actors in India have been warned that they have been targets of spying attempts.
- In 2021, the Paris-based Forbidden Stories collective reported that the Pegasus spyware, which was sold only to government agencies by an Israeli firm NSO Group, was allegedly used on a range of journalists, civil society groups and politicians in India.
- A cyber attack is a malicious and deliberate attempt to breach the security of computer systems, networks, or digital devices, with the intent of stealing, damaging, altering, or accessing sensitive data, disrupting operations, or causing harm in the digital realm.
- State-sponsored cyber attacks, also known as nation-state cyber attacks are cyberattacks conducted or supported by governments or government agencies against other nations, organizations, or individuals.
- These attacks are characterized by their high level of sophistication, organization, and resources, as they are backed by the extensive capabilities and funding of a nation-state.
- Examples of state-sponsored cyberattacks include the Stuxnet worm, which targeted Iran’s nuclear program, the alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and the 2017 WannaCry ransomware attack, which was linked to North Korea.
- State Food Safety Index 2022- 2023 –
- The State Food Safety Index (SFSI) 2022- 2023 released by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) sheds light on the performance of Indian states in ensuring food safety.
- The 2022- 2023 index introduced a new parameter, ‘Improvement in SFSI Rank’, which assessed a state’s progress from the previous year. To accommodate this change, weights of other parameters were adjusted.
State Food Safety Index (SFSI)-
- It is an annual evaluation that measures the performance of states and union territories on food safety.
- The Index is a dynamic quantitative and qualitative benchmarking model that provides an objective framework for evaluating food safety across all States/UTs.
- SFSI was started in 2018-19 to create a competitive and positive change in the food safety ecosystem in the country.
- Over the past five years, 19 out of 20 large Indian states, including Maharashtra, Bihar, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh, have experienced a decline in their 2022 – 2023 SFSI scores compared to 2019.
- After adjusting for a new parameter introduced in the 2022- 2023 index, 15 out of 20 states recorded lower SFSI scores in 2022 – 2023 compared to 2019.
- Saima Wazed Elected as WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia –
- Saima Wazed (from Bangladesh) was elected as the Regional Director of the World Health Organization’s South-East Asia region during the 76th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Southeast Asia.
- The Regional Committee for South-East Asia is WHO’s governing body in the Region.
- The WHO Southeast Asia Region has 11 Member States – Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Timor-Leste. WHO has country offices in all 11 Member States.
- The WHO South-East Asia Regional Office is headquartered in New Delhi, India.