UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis Oct07

D. GS4 Related

E. Editorials

Note to the Students:

• This particular topic as it reads falls under the domain of GS Paper III, wherein, it can be mapped to multiple subject areas- such as Science and Technology and Internal Security (threats to internal security).  
• However, there is a dimension of this article which falls under the purview of GS Paper II (Polity and Governance), as it also deals with fundamental rights such as the Right to Privacy.

Editorial Analysis:

Why in the news?

• On September 16, 2018, Facebook noticed an unusual spike in the number of times the platform’s ‘View As’ feature was being used.
• This ‘View As’ feature allows users to see how their Facebook page will appear to another user.
• The ‘View As’ feature was introduced by Facebook as a privacy control feature.
• The ‘View As’ feature allows users to check the information they were sharing with others. However, this proved to be a point of vulnerability because of some bugs that were introduced in the software in July 2017.
• Subsequent to this development, on September 25, 2018, Facebook announced that it had identified this as a malicious activity in which the access tokens of 50 million users were appropriated by unknown hackers, and certain personal details possibly accessed.

Brief Note on Access token:

• An ‘Access token’ is a digital key that allows users to stay logged into Facebook on a device or browser without having to sign in repeatedly using their password.
• These Access tokens extend their reach to other apps or services that users sign into using their Facebook account.
• If hackers have the access tokens, they do not require passwords to get into Facebook accounts or apps like Instagram that utilise the Facebook login.

How did hackers take advantage?

• It is believed that while using the ‘View As’ feature, Facebook’s video uploader tool also appeared on the page at times.
• This generated an access token that was not the user’s but of the person the user was looking up.
• To illustrate this further, let’s take an example: If Hacker A selected User B for ‘View As,’ and the video uploader appeared on the page, it generated an access token for User B which was then available to Hacker A.
• As a consequence to this, Facebook had to force the affected 50 million users, and an additional 40 million users who had used the ‘View As’ feature since last July (July 2017) to log in again so that their access tokens changed.
• It is believed that this breach is the largest in the history of the platform.

Action taken by Facebook

• • Facebook has since said it has resolved the bugs.
  • Also, pursuant to these developments, Facebook is said to be working with the FBI on the issue.
  • Facebook has also informed the Irish Data Protection Commission, since the European Union’s strict new data protection law states that it has to be informed within 72 hours if anyone in the European Economic Area is affected.

• The Commission has started a probe, and Facebook faces a fine that could go over a billion dollars.

The Gravity of the Threat:

• This breach again puts the spotlight on the vulnerabilities of Facebook,
• Facebook claims over two billion users and along with Google controls more than half of the global digital advertisement revenue.
• Facebook was caught on the wrong foot earlier this year, 2018 when the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke.
• The Cambridge Analytica episode revealed that data of up to 87 million users were harvested and used for political campaigning.
• Aside from the direct impact of private data being accessed, it is important to note that massive data sets allow for psychological profiling.

• This could lead to targeted political advertising and manipulation, especially at a time when crucial mid-term elections are due in the United States and in India.
• This also undermines the faith in the ‘single sign-in.’ The Facebook sign-in has been utilised by a whole set of services, from gaming apps to news apps, as a way to log in to their sites or apps based on the idea that large digital entities like Facebook and Google provide better security. This trust now stands shaken.
• While Facebook has reportedly refreshed the access tokens of all affected parties, the extent to which the hackers had access to connected third-party apps remains unclear.

Note to the Students:

• This particular topic has featured in the news many times over the past few days in the wake of the historic judgement by the Supreme Court of India. This acquires the critical mass of a key issue in the news as there have been multiple perspectives which have been reflected in press releases and opinions voiced by a vast section of society.
• Here, we lend perspective to this issue, by first revisiting the background of the issue and some of the salient aspects of the judgement. We then move on to the points discussed specifically in this article that majorly focuses on the next steps which should be taken in order to make the temple ‘gender friendly’.  

Larger Background:

• Recently, the Supreme Court’s ruled, in a 4:1 majority, that the exclusionary practice of women in the 10-50 age group from the Sabarimala temple in Kerala, violates the rights of women devotees.  
• The apex court was assessing the constitutionality of the Sabarimala custom of excluding women in their ‘menstruating years’. The custom was allowed by Rule 3(b) of the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship Act, 1965.
• It is believed that this verdict of the Supreme Court establishes the legal principle that individual freedom prevails over purported group rights, even in matters of religion.
• It is important to note that the state of Kerala had supported the entry of women into the temple, arguing that the “custom” of excluding women violated their rights.
• However, on the other hand, the Travancore Devaswom Board had supported the custom of not allowing women into the temple, saying that temples across the country do not allow women who are menstruating. The Ayyappa Seva Sangham had argued that the court has to find a way to uphold this custom so that other “similar customs” are not disturbed.

A Note on Sabarimala:

• The temple is situated atop a hill in the deep forests of the Periyar Tiger Reserve in the Western Ghats in Pathanamthitta district.
• This ancient forest shrine, situated 210 km from Kochi, draws pilgrims from different parts of the country.
• Recently, with the development of road transport and communication facilities, Sabarimala has been witnessing a phenomenal increase in the number of pilgrims. The Travancore Devaswom Board, administers the temple.
• The Travancore Devaswom Board estimates that around 5 crore devotees had visited the temple during the last pilgrim season.
• The season normally begins in mid-November and ends in January. The revenue from the temple last year (2017) was ₹255 crore.

A look at the majority view:

• The majority held that devotees of Lord Ayyappa do not constitute a separate religious denomination and that the prohibition on women is not an essential part of Hindu religion.

A look at the dissenting view:

• Justice Indu Malhotra was the lone dissenting voice.
• Justice Indu Malhotra chose not to review the religious practice on the touchstone of gender equality or individual freedom.
• Her view that the court “cannot impose its morality or rationality with respect to the form of worship of a deity” accorded greater importance to the idea of religious freedom as being mainly the preserve of an institution rather than an individual’s right.
• She asserted that issues of deep religious sentiments should not be ordinarily be interfered by the court.
• Further, she went on to add that the court should not interfere unless if there is any aggrieved person from that section or religion. What constitutes essential religious practice is for the religious community to decide, not for the court.

• In conclusion, the Court has attempted to grapple with the stigmatisation of women devotees that is largely based on a medieval view of menstruation as symbolising impurity and pollution.
• To Chief Justice Dipak Misra, any rule based on segregation of women pertaining to biological characteristics is indefensible and unconstitutional.
• Further, devotion cannot be subjected to the stereotypes of gender.
• Justice D.Y. Chandrachud asserted that stigma built around traditional notions of impurity has no place in the constitutional order, and exclusion based on the notion of impurity is a form of untouchability.
• CJI Misra also went on to add that the devotees of Ayyappa do not constitute a separate religious denomination.
• Justice Rohinton F. Nariman said the fundamental rights claimed by worshippers based on ‘custom and usage’ must yield to the fundamental right of women to practise religion. The decision reaffirms the Constitution’s transformative character and derives strength from the centrality it accords to fundamental rights.

Editorial Analysis:

How do things stand at the moment?

• Post the verdict of the Supreme Court, it is up to the Kerala government and the Travancore Devaswom Board to ensure that women who may choose to offer prayers at the temple during the coming pilgrim season are given protection. The season starts on November 18.
• It is believed that the parties to the dispute are likely to seek a review of the verdict.
• Currently, a protest against the ruling of the Court is gathering momentum in the State.
• As things stand, there is no way of knowing how many women would turn up at the temple during the season.
• It is important to note that with the political colour that the issue has acquired, the State government is treading cautiously, hoping that there would not be a sudden inflow of women devotees.
• The police will deploy 500 additional personnel at the temple.

Current Challenges:

• The biggest challenge is to create sufficient infrastructure to meet a possible increase in the number of devotees, especially women.
• It is important to note that the mid-August floods brought down several structures.
• One such structure is at Pampa, where the uphill trek to the temple begins. Among these were a temporary shelter, which could house 5,000 pilgrims at a time, three multi-storey toilet blocks, bathing ghats and three bridges across the River Pampa.
• Post the recent floods, the pumphouse of the Kerala Water Authority still remains buried under a huge deposit of sand, and the waterlines on the banks of the river are clogged with sand, badly affecting drinking water supply.
• Currently, the state government and the Devaswom Board are racing against time to put the place back into some shape before the season begins.
• In conclusion, the real challenge will be restoration of drinking water and sewage facilities and creation of sufficient temporary facilities for devotees. Creation of such facilities for women especially is of urgent importance.
• For decades, Sabarimala has almost exclusively hosted male devotees. With the Supreme Court extending the right of worship to women, the immediate challenge is to make it gender-friendly.

F. Tidbits

G. Prelims Fact

H. Practice Questions for UPSC Prelims Exam

1. The Bill seeks to establish adjudicating authorities and an Appellate Tribunal to deal with benami transactions

2. The Bill defines benamidar as the person in whose name the benami property is held or transferred, and a beneficial owner as the person for whose benefit the property is being held by the benamidar.

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

I. Practice Questions for UPSC Mains Exam