Wise Bytes

The high point in Fadia’s career came in November 2001when he was consulted by a classified intelligence agency for breaking an encrypted message sent by one of Osama Bin Laden’s men. “Since then I have been involved in numerous classified projects pertaining to cyber terrorism and crime,” says Fadia,who has teamed up with various agencies investigating the Gujarat serial blasts and the more recent Mumbai terror attacks. “Cyber terrorism is the going to be the biggest challenge in the coming few years,” he adds.

To spread awareness on safe surfing,he has teamed up with the youth brand Flying Machine. “Right now,I am touring Punjab where I am conducting interactive sessions with young internet users,” Fadia says. Fadia provides tips on social networking as well. “I want everyone who uses the internet,be it to socialise or for business or to send e-mails,to follow four important commands,” he mentions. “A strong password is really important. You have no idea how easy it is to hack into an e-mail account. At the same time,it is wise to install a firewall and invest in an anti-virus program that you update at least once a week. Your system should also have an anti-spyware program. These are simple methods that are not difficult to follow,” he adds.

Fadia has authored several books on hacking and internet security and rolled out an innovative board game called Hack Attack,apart from hosting an MTV show with VJ Jose called What the Hack. Viruses do not just travel through emails,he says,adding “Sites like Facebook,Twitter are rather vulnerable. Your friend could post a video link on your wall and the minute you click download,you’ve invited a virus into your system.” The response to the TV show has been phenomenal,Fadia says. “We are now shooting for Season 2. It’s a fun way for the family to learn about safe internet use,” he adds.

To bring alive his vision of creating a more secure internet,Fadia has started a unique computer security training and certification course known as the Ankit Fadia Certified Ethical Hacker program. “Today it is Asia’s largest cyber security training and certification program. We have trained almost 20,000 people trained over the last three years across cities in India and China,” he says.

Ankit Fadia will be available for answering queries at the Flying Machine store in Sector 17 on Tuesday at 4 pm.