According to the National Journal, the United States and India signed an agreement on July 19 that is designed to ensure that the two countries collaborate on cybersecurity efforts. Jane Holl Lute, deputy secretary for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and R. Chandrashekhar, secretary of India’s Department of Information Technology, signed the memorandum in New Delhi.
The National Journal noted that the memorandum is a non-binding understanding and that under the agreement, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team and DHS’ United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team will exchange cybersecurity information and expertise.
The article noted that the agreement came about during DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano’s visit to India in May 2011. During that trip, she agreed to the initiative, confirming that the agreement was designed to fulfill one of the pillars of the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue, which was established on July 20, 2009.
According to the article, many cybersecurity experts support the memorandum and have stated that more international collaboration is needed because existing legal procedures are often too slow to combat cyber threats.
“Through this arrangement, the respective governments and broader cybersecurity communities in both the United States and India will have the ability to coordinate with their counterparts on a broad range of technical and operational cyber issues,” DHS said in a statement.
See the original National Journal article here.