In a question posed in the parliament on February 2, Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar asked the Ministry of Communications: whether Virtual Private Network (VPN) service providers in India or from outside are covered by the Telecommunications Act; whether VPN users in India are under the ambit of the Act and can they download or access VPNs that do not have operations in India; whether it is legal to use browsers like Tor which smudge any surveillance attempt on online activity; and whether "Smart Routing" servers, located outside India, which allow people to connect to Indian IP addresses from a remote server, will be under this new law and 2022 CERT-In regulations? In response to these questions, Devusinh Chauhan, Minister of State for Communications, said: Various License Agreements issued under the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 provide terms and conditions related to the provision of Virtual Private Networks by Telecom Service Providers. In terms of the provisions of the Information Technology Act, 2008, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN) issued cyber security directives on 28.04.2022. The directives are available on the CERT-IN website and are self-explanatory. Talking Points The Minister's response does not answer the questions posed by Jawhar Sircar. While Sircar specifically asks if the Telecommunications Act (passed in December 2023) covers VPNs, the Minister states that "VPNs of telecom service providers" are covered under the "Telegraph Act 1885" — which was repealed by the Telecommunications Act— and the cybersecurity directions issued by CERT-In under the IT Act. CERT-In's…
