Samsung to ensure compliance with Cert-In rules

New Delhi: Korean technology giant Samsung on Friday said it will comply with the Cert-In directive that has proposed VPN services, cloud service providers etc to maintain logs of their system for six months and details of subscribers for five years.

Around a dozen international industry bodies, including ITI -- whose members include Samsung, Apple, Google and Cisco, have opposed the proposed cybersecurity rules.

In response to a question on Samsung's views on the proposed rules and their impact on the company's security policies, its VP and head of security Seungwon Shin said the user data stored is encrypted end-to-end and therefore it will not bring about any changes in terms of the firm's security business or policy.

"The data is not available for us to use for analysis. This is a subject that we will discuss with the legal team at Samsung so that we can comply with the different state-level privacy regulations and also provide maximum protection to our users. As I said, our concern data has been encrypted end to end. So, we'll make sure that we can satisfy both our compliance with the national regulations as well as user information protection," Shin said.

He was speaking to reporters during a virtual conference on Samsung security solutions for individuals and enterprises.

The 11 international bodies -- including Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), BSA - The Software Alliance, Cybersecurity Coalition, Digital Europe, and US-India Business Council -- in a joint letter had said that India's new directive, which mandates reporting of cyberattack incidents within six hours and storing users' logs for 5 years, will make it difficult for companies to do business in the country.

Shin leads the security research and development team in the mobile experience business. He has led security innovation across the Samsung Galaxy ecosystem, including the development of secure AP, and Knox Vault, among others.

"Security is the foundation of every decision we make. We treat users' secrets as state secrets. Samsung Knox, is one of the most trusted in the world, with more certifications for security than anything else out there," he said.