Cybersecurity has moved beyond being a purely technology-related concern and has become a boardroom-level issue for organisations, Sebi Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said on Monday, stressing the need for greater caution and accountability while deploying artificial intelligence in critical infrastructure.
Pandey said the growing use of automation and artificial intelligence in cyber defence can bring significant benefits, but it can also introduce new vulnerabilities if the technology is not properly designed, governed and monitored.
He emphasised that organisations cannot treat cybersecurity as the sole responsibility of their information technology departments and must instead make it part of broader corporate governance and risk-management frameworks.
Speaking at the inauguration of a symposium on cyber defence organised by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) at its capacity-building body, the National Institute of Securities Markets, near Mumbai, Pandey called for a collective approach to cybersecurity.
“We need to look at cybersecurity more from a collective perspective than merely individual lens,” he said. The Sebi chairman's remarks assume greater significance as financial markets and institutions increasingly depend on digital infrastructure for trading, settlement, communication, data management and other critical operations. Any disruption to these systems can potentially affect not only individual organisations but also the wider financial ecosystem.
Pandey said the growing adoption of automation in c
yber defence should not lead organisations to assume that technology alone can eliminate cyber risks. While AI-based systems can help identify threats faster, analyse large volumes of data and respond to potential attacks, their deployment also creates additional risks that need to be addressed.
He cautioned that artificial intelligence used for cybersecurity must itself meet high standards of security, governance and accountability.
“AI for cybersecurity must itself be secure, governed and accountable,” Pandey said.
The comments highlight the emerging challenge of ensuring that AI systems introduced to strengthen cyber defences do not themselves become a source of vulnerability. As organisations increasingly rely on automated systems to detect and respond to threats, weaknesses in the underlying technology, data or decision-making processes could have wider consequences.
The Sebi chief also stressed the importance of viewing cyber threats collectively. Financial institutions, market infrastructure organisations, technology providers and regulators operate within an interconnected digital ecosystem. A vulnerability at one point can potentially create risks for other participants.
A collective cybersecurity approach can therefore help organisations share information, improve preparedness and respond more effectively to emerging threats. It can also enable institutions to learn from cyber incidents and strengthen their systems before similar vulnerabilities are exploited elsewhere.
The symposium organised by Sebi comes at a time when cybersecurity risks are becoming increasingly complex, with organisations facing threats that can evolve rapidly alongside technological advancements.
Also read: Bring back lower-ethanol petrol option: Chief Economic Adviser
For financial-market regulators and participants, maintaining the integrity and resilience of digital infrastructure is particularly important because disruptions can affect trading systems, investor information and market operations.
Pandey's remarks underline the need for senior management and boards to take a more active role in cybersecurity planning rather than leaving such matters entirely to technical teams.
As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into critical systems, organisations will need to balance innovation with safeguards covering security, oversight, accountability and risk management.
The message from Sebi is therefore clear: cybersecurity must be treated as an enterprise-wide responsibility, while the use of AI in cyber defence must be accompanied by strong governance and adequate safeguards to ensure that technology designed to protect critical infrastructure does not create new risks.
Follow us
