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Hyderabad: Following the recent escalation in India-Pakistan tensions, which has led to an increased risk of cyber threats, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has taken steps to upgrade its cyber security measures. The department has installed firewalls and implemented a password-based access system to protect its core weather data platforms from potential cyber attacks.
According to officials, the move comes after suspicious data access attempts were detected from IP addresses in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
“In the past, IMD websites and databases were accessible to many without any security measures in place. Given the current situation and the risk of cyber threats from outside the country, it was decided to install firewalls and restrict access to authorized individuals with user ID and password. This will help prevent cyber attacks,” said Dr. K Nagaratna, Director of IMD, Hyderabad.
As part of these security measures, access to data from automatic weather stations (AWS) and RAPID (real-time analysis of product and information dissemination) has been restricted. RAPID is a web-based tool used for visualizing and analyzing Indian National Satellite (INSAT) system data, which is crucial for identifying weather events.
The decision to restrict access to these tools has raised concerns among weather bloggers and independent meteorologists, who regularly use IMD tools for real-time updates.
Balaji T, also known as Telangana Weatherman, expressed his concerns, saying, “IMD has now restricted access to AWS and RAPID, which were very useful for weather enthusiasts and bloggers.” He described the AWS system, which includes remote stations, telemetry, and Earth receiving stations equipped to measure temperature, humidity, pressure, rainfall, wind, solar radiation, and soil metrics.
“Although the RADAR of IMD is still accessible, we don’t know how long it will remain so. As weather enthusiasts, we feel that providing access to this data should not be a cyber security issue. We rely on ground observations and international models, and it will be challenging for young weather enthusiasts who will have to depend on international data now,” he added.
Balaji also pointed out that in many countries, weather data is treated as open data. “Worldwide, weather data is liberalized and made available as open data. India seems to be moving in the opposite direction,” he said.
S Sai Kiran, Vizag Weatherman, said, “We primarily rely on weather models from European and US-based sources. We have used AWS and RAPID only a few times. Additionally, we refer to data from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh State Development Planning Society portals. For other regions in India, we largely depend on data from IMD, which is now inaccessible. However, we can still use IMD’s doppler radar system for radar information.”
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