'Responsible', 'explainable AI' essential to combat cybercrime: Principal Secretary to Maharashtra CM

Mumbai: There is need for “responsible AI”, “humans in the loop for important decisions” and “explainable AI” to combat the dangers of cybercrime resulting from “hidden biases in AI”, said Brijesh Singh, Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, Government of Maharashtra.

“Gen AI itself has opened up a huge opportunity for cybercriminals to multiply their capabilities and this has left the whole fintech and financial ecosystem of the world at a very vulnerable place”, said Singh, a senior IPS officer.

He was speaking at a panel discussion on “Chasing Shadows: The Fintech-Cyber Cop Tango Against Digital Bandits”, at the India Digital Summit, in Mumbai.

Highlighting the need for responsible AI, co-panelist Anuj Gupta, CEO, Hitachi Systems India, said, “Gen AI is a game-changer. We will have AI attack, AI prevent, then again attack. Looking at all of that is very important from the government level, at enterprise level, and even at consulting level, for all of us, to put in rules, regulations around AI. We are working with a lot of start-ups from the US and we're getting them to India to talk about how we can really regulate AI and how we can make a place where we have a level playing field.”

Replying to a question from the session-moderator Burgess Sam Cooper, Cybersecurity Consulting Partner, EY, about the state of public-private partnership in tackling the threats from “digital bandits”, Singh further said, “Unfortunately not much is happening there. Innovation will have to come from a purely, if not philanthropic, an altruistic space, which then, may or may not have any economic benefits.”