Google move to make digital space safer

New Delhi: Google on Tuesday announced a major initiative to make India's digital space safer by unveiling its new 'Safety Charter' during the 'Safer with Google India Summit'. Google's 'Digikavach' programme, a key part of the initiative, has already reached over 17.7 crore Indians with AI-powered tools and awareness campaigns against financial scams.
Google's Search now identifies 20 times more scam websites, and scam attacks on customer service and government platforms have dropped by 80 per cent and 70 per cent, respectively.
On the messaging side, Google Messages is blocking over 500 million scam texts every month.Google Pay, which is widely used in India, has sent out over 4.1 crore alerts to warn users about possible frauds. It also helped prevent fraud worth Rs 13,000 crore in 2024 alone. The company's app safety system, Google Play Protect, has blocked nearly 6 crore risky app installs across 1.3 crore devices since it was piloted in India in October 2024.Gmail, which is used by billions globally, is automatically stopping more than 99.9 per cent of spam, phishing attempts and malware.
Google is also working to strengthen cybersecurity on a larger scale. To further support the ecosystem, Google.org has pledged $20 million to expand the Asia-Pacific Cybersecurity Fund, including $5 million to The Asia Foundation.This will help set up 10 new cyberclinics in the region and partner with Indian universities to train students and small businesses in digital safety. Another key partnership was announced with IIT-Madras to advance Post-Quantum Cryptography.
Preeti Lobana, Vice President and Country Manager for Google India, said that building trust in India's digital infrastructure is crucial to the country's development goals.She added that Google's AI systems are already able to detect never-before-seen scams and attacks, giving users an added layer of protection.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

India Today

27 minutes ago

• India Today

LinkedIn Cofounder Reid Hoffman says people are underestimating impact of AI on jobs, rejects bloodbath fears

Many professionals are worried about AI taking over jobs, especially in white-collar roles. However, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman believes that the fear of AI, particularly the panic over mass job losses, is all due to its exaggeration. Hoffman believes that while AI will certainly bring significant transformation to the job sector, there will be no bloodbath for white-collar made these comments in response to a statement by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei during an interview with Fast Company. Amodei had told Axios that AI could lead to a dramatic overhaul of white-collar work. While Hoffman acknowledged that change is inevitable, he dismissed the idea that the rise of AI would spell catastrophe for is right that over, call it, a decade or three, it will bring a massive set of job transformations. And some of that transformation will involve replacement issues,' Hoffman said. He emphasised that the shift in jobs due to AI should not be confused with total job destruction. 'Just because a function's coming that has a replacement area on a certain set of tasks doesn't mean all of this job's going to get replaced.' To support his views, Hoffman pointed to the example of the launch of spreadsheet software like Excel. He highlighted that although Excel impacted the nature of accounting work, it did not eliminate the need for accountants. Instead, the accounting profession evolved and even expanded in scope. 'Everyone was predicting that the accountant job would go away. And actually, in fact, the accountant job got broader, richer,' he maintains a clear view that, in future, AI will assist humans rather than replace them entirely. He envisions a world of 'person plus AI doing things' as the most likely scenario going forward. Therefore, AI-powered tools like GPT-4, Claude, and Microsoft Copilot should be used to enhance departments — not eliminate them. He warns that trying to completely substitute humans with AI would be a serious mistake. 'Could I just replace, for example, my accountants with GPT-4? The answer is absolutely not. That would be a disastrous mistake.'The LinkedIn co-founder also pushed back against the notion that automation through AI would wipe out entire departments. 'Let's replace my marketing department or my sales department with GPT-4. Absolutely not,' he said, adding, 'that's nowhere close to a bloodbath.'However, Hoffman is not denying the potential for job replacement altogether. He acknowledges that some roles are more vulnerable — especially those that have already been reduced to scripted, mechanical tasks. 'What jobs are most likely to be replaced? They're the ones where we're trying to program human beings to act like robots.' Yet, even in such cases, Hoffman believes AI will not take over everything. Much will depend on how companies choose to implement AI in their workflows.

Time of India

28 minutes ago

• Time of India

India Inc's AI reality check: Why 92% still struggle to scale AI

Only BFSI (71%) and ITES (80%) show signs of AI maturity — but even they face integration and governance and retail sectors have >60% AI experimentation, but governance, ethics, and backend integration stall AI being a boardroom buzzword, only 8% of enterprises have realized business-scale AI value. AI might be the star of corporate town halls and keynote speeches, but behind the curtains of glossy brochures and tech summits lies an inconvenient truth: the vast majority of Indian enterprises are nowhere close to AI maturity. According to the ETCIO Intelligence Report AI Playbook – GPUs, Strategies & Readiness Index 2025, a staggering 92% of organizations remain stuck in pilot or exploratory phases. Only a slim 8% have fully implemented AI initiatives. This discrepancy reveals a telling reality—while boardrooms are bullish about AI's potential, operationalizing it at scale remains an uphill task. For a quarter of surveyed firms, AI remains an abstract concept—a buzzword to explore rather than a tool to deploy. Pilot paralysis: From proof of concept to proof of value What's keeping India Inc from achieving AI lift-off? At the heart of the issue lies an ROI dilemma. AI pilots, often built around automation or chatbots, fail to deliver tangible business impact. 'Boards demand measurable business value,' the report notes, 'but most AI efforts focus on narrow use cases with limited bottom-line value.' In response, many CIOs are shifting their KPIs from 'proof of concept' to 'proof of value,' with a sharper focus on metrics like Return on Employee (RoE). 'AI has moved beyond proof of concept - it's now about proof of value. With data at its core, the true success metric is ROE: Return on Employee, where enhanced productivity and smarter efficiency reveals AI's real impact,' says Rakesh Bhardwaj, Group Chief Information Officer, Lupin. The infrastructure conundrum: Legacy systems as a bottleneck India's digital backbone—comprising legacy ERP, SCADA, MES, and siloed data systems—is not AI-ready. In manufacturing, for instance, only 57% of firms report any form of AI adoption. Even among these, most remain confined to pilot projects, thanks to fragmented operational technology and poor data standardization. The BFSI sector leads India's AI journey in terms of adoption maturity. Banks and insurers are embedding AI into fraud detection, underwriting, and customer service. But deeper integration is still constrained by legacy systems and high implementation costs. 'AI adoption in BFSI is not just about improving efficiency. It is redefining resilience, security, compliance and customer experience at scale,' says Sampath Manickam , Chief Technology Officer, National Stock Exchange of India. 'As we integrate AI-driven solutions, the emphasis must remain on ethical innovation, regulatory compliance and long-term value creation.' In retail and consumer goods, the maturity is mixed. While digital-native firms and FMCG giants leverage AI for personalization and supply chain visibility, traditional retailers are still stuck on basic digital transformation journeys. Data privacy and ERP integration issues loom large. In healthcare and pharma, AI use cases are growing—from diagnostics and imaging to drug discovery. However, full-scale adoption is rare, and ethical concerns around bias and explainability are front and center. ITES players show relative maturity. Roughly 60% have implemented AI for customer service automation, IT ops, or HR analytics. But only 8% have embedded AI into core functions. The rest remain tactical, often boxed into non-core deployments due to legacy constraints and unclear ROI. Talent deficit vs tool overload Another major hurdle? – People. Despite the explosion of AI platforms and APIs, there is a severe shortage of skilled professionals—particularly AI engineers, data scientists, and MLOps experts. 'There is a huge shortage of skilled talent because modern education is unable to keep up with the speed of change,' says Priya Dar, CIO, Valvoline Cummins . 'We are not experimenting enough and limitations of industry-specific tools lead to customizations that need skills, time, and money. What we are doing is simple—upskilling, leaning on open source, and outsourcing some innovation to smaller partners working on specific use cases.' Organizations are responding with hybrid strategies: reskilling programs, partnerships with academic institutions, and tapping global talent pools via remote work. 'Our leadership emphasizes innovation, operational excellence, and customer-centricity as core pillars of our growth strategy,' adds Kavita Bijlani, Head of IT & RAD, Bausch + Lomb. 'We are up-skilling and re-skilling our employees by rolling out training programs on AI/ML through virtual platforms. To overcome local shortages, we are tapping into global and regional talent pools.' Integration complexity: The silent killer Even when talent and tools are available, most AI projects flounder during integration. ETCIO Intelligence survey revealed that poor post-deployment support and a lack of plug-and-play capabilities remain key friction points—particularly in sectors like BFSI and healthcare, where compliance demands are non-negotiable. As Anand Sinha, CIO, Birlasoft, explains: 'Organizations address the shortage by upskilling existing staff, recruiting from diverse backgrounds, and using global remote talent… Automation and low-code AI tools are adopted to reduce reliance on specialists.' Who's Winning and Who's Lagging? A Sectoral Snapshot ITES (80%) and BFSI (71%) lead due to digital maturity and strong risk/compliance needs. Healthcare (70%) is gaining traction in diagnostics and drug discovery, but lags in AI governance. Retail (61%) shines in front-end CX but falters on backend integrations. Manufacturing (57%) struggles with data quality and fragmented tech environments. From projects to platforms: Global lessons for India Inc The report emphasizes that successful AI transformation isn't about isolated pilots—it's about 'platformization'. Giants like JPMorgan (COIN platform) and Siemens (AI-augmented digital twins) show the way. Indian firms must follow suit by institutionalizing AI Centers of Excellence, building explainable AI systems, and investing in scalable data infrastructure. To paraphrase Rucha Nanavati of Mahindra & Mahindra: 'AI has moved from curiosity to boardroom mandate. The challenge now is not in adopting AI—but in delivering on its promise.' The next 24 months represent a defining window. For India Inc., this is the moment to evolve from pilot purgatory to platform-powered performance. The age of AI has begun—now it's time to make it real. The AI Playbook | ET CIO

Mint

32 minutes ago

• Mint

Air India Crash: Parliament panel had flagged 'discrepancy' in aviation funding, months before Ahmedabad tragedy

Air India Crash: A parliamentary standing committee report flagged a 'distinct imbalance' and 'discrepancy' in the allocation of funds across key aviation bodies in March, about three months before the tragic Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad. The panel observed that the 'discrepancy' raised important questions about prioritising regulatory compliance over security infrastructure and accident investigation capabilities. The panel recommended the adoption of performance-based budgeting for aviation regulatory bodies, linking allocations to specific performance indicators. 'The Committee observes that the Capital Outlay for BE 2025 distinct imbalance in the allocation of funds across key aviation bodies. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), entrusted with regulatory oversight, commands the largest share of ₹ 30 Crore, nearly half of the total budget,' reads the report by the Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture. Air India Plane Crash: The 32-member standing committee, headed by Janata Dal United MP Sanjay Jha, presented its report in the Rajya Sabha on March 25, 2025. The London-bound Air India flight AI-171 carrying 242 passengers and crew members crashed in Ahmedabad on 12 June. All but one on board the plane died along with nearly 29 on the ground when the aircraft smashed into a medical complex. 'While its role in ensuring compliance with aviation standards is indisputable, the justification for such a significant allocation must be carefully examined to ensure efficiency and accountability,' the report reads. Air India Plane Crash: According to the report, while the DGCA was allocated ₹30 crore for the financial year 2025-26, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) got ₹20 crore, and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) received only ₹15 crore According to the report, while the DGCA was allocated ₹ 30 crore for the financial year 2025-26, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) got ₹ 20 crore, and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) received only ₹ 15 crore. The AAIB is probing the Ahmedabad Air India plane crash. 'In contrast, the BCAS and AAIB receive ₹ 15 Crore and ₹ 20 Crore, respectively. While regulatory compliance remains essential, the rapid expansion of aviation infrastructure, with airports increasing from 74 in 2014 to 147 in 2022 and a target of 220 by 2024-25, necessitates proportional growth of security capabilities and accident investigation resources. In view of the growing complexity of aviation security threats and the critical nature of accident investigations, the Committee finds these allocations relatively modest,' the report reads. The 32-member standing committee, headed by Janata Dal United MP Sanjay Jha, presented its report in the Rajya Sabha on 25 March 2025. Apart from Jha (Chairman), the other members of the panel included M Mohamed Abdulla, M Nadimul Haque, Jaggesh, Sudha Murty, Imran Pratapgarhi from the Rajya Sabha and Mina Altaf Ahmad, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Manoj Tiwari, and KC Venugopal from the Lok Sabha, to name a few. The report said the 'funding discrepancy' raises important questions about prioritising regulatory compliance over security infrastructure and accident investigation capabilities. The panel recommended that aviation regulatory bodies adopt performance-based budgeting, linking allocations to specific performance indicators and outcomes. 'This approach would enhance accountability and ensure that funds are utilised efficiently to address the most pressing challenges within each domain. Regular performance audits should be conducted to assess the effectiveness of allocated resources and inform future budgeting decisions," it said. Air India Plane Crash: The report said the 'funding discrepancy' raises important questions about prioritising regulatory compliance over security infrastructure and accident investigation capabilities. The discrepancy raises important questions about prioritising regulatory compliance over security infrastructure and accident investigation capabilities. The panel, as reported by LiveMint earlier, also raised serious concerns over the limited manpower in the DGCA, BCAS, and the Airports Authority of India (AAI).