India's offshore IT and call centre industry targeted by terror group

Wed, 2005-03-05

Indian police have uncovered plans by a Pakistan-based group to attack companies working in the offshore IT and call centre industry.

Members of the Lashkar-e-Taiba terror group engaged Police in New Delhi in an hour long shoot out resulting in the capture of two and the deaths of three members. Police later raided their base and found information revealing they had visited Bangalore in December to survey software companies as potential targets as well as AK56 rifles, ammunition and over 10kg of the explosive RDX.

The Lashkar-e-Taiba group is one of the largest organisations fighting for the separation of Kashmir from India and is strongly anti-US.

This latest discovery adds fuel to the concerns over the security risks of Outsourcing, which our latest survey (2005 BCM) reveals includes BCM measures in only 13% of contracts and amplifies the need for strong BCM measures to be embedded and regularly reviewed in all contracts.

Bangalore is the heart of India's offshore IT industry and many Western and global multinationals have outsourced IT and call centre operations there. A high profile attack on Bangalore would be aimed at damaging India's booming economy and could cause considerable supply chain disruption to many western organisations as well as affecting business confidence concerning the security aspects of outsourced services and contracts.

Local companies have received no specific terrorist threat information from the authorities to date, but are watching the situation closely with many stepping up their own security measures.

Companies and organisations with Suppliers in the region should consider reviewing the partners arrangements for BCM and should ensure regular review and testing of all plans as part of the contracts.

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