NEW DELHI: Critical cybersecurity vulnerabilities in systems linked to RailTel Corporation of India have raised fresh concerns over the security of India’s expanding surveillance infrastructure, even as recent police investigations reveal how CCTV networks are being exploited for espionage.
RailTel, a public sector undertaking under the Ministry of Railways, operates one of the country’s largest telecom and digital infrastructure networks, providing connectivity, data centre services and surveillance backbone support across railway stations and government systems. Its network underpins communication systems used in railway operations and increasingly supports CCTV-based monitoring across public infrastructure.
A security assessment of infrastructure associated with the “rcil.gov.in” domain found that surveillance systems, remote access services and databases were directly exposed to the public internet without adequate safeguards.
The findings come days after police busted an alleged espionage network in which operatives, linked to Pakistan’s ISI, installed covert CCTV cameras at sensitive locations to monitor Indian military movement and transmit live feeds across the border. Investigators said the network enabled real-time tracking of troop movement and strategic assets through remotely accessed cameras.
The contrast is operational. In the espionage case, cameras had to be physically deployed to capture footage. In the RailTel-linked systems, exposed services suggest that similar access pathways may already exist within networked infrastructure if vulnerabilities are exploited.
According to the assessment, multiple IoT-based camera systems were found accessible over the internet, potentially allowing unauthorised users to view live feeds or interact with device controls. Remote administrative services such as SSH and Remote Desktop Protocol were also exposed, along with publicly reachable database servers, significantly increasing the risk of system compromise and data leakage.
The presence of such vulnerabilities within a government-linked telecom backbone raises systemic concerns. If exploited, these gaps could enable unauthorised surveillance access, compromise of internal networks and potential disruption of critical communication systems tied to railway operations. Given RailTel’s integration with nationwide infrastructure, the risk is not limited to isolated systems but could scale across interconnected networks. The broader concern lies in the rapid expansion of CCTV-based surveillance across public infrastructure, including railway stations and urban centres, without corresponding strengthening of cybersecurity controls. Internet-connected cameras, if improperly secured, can themselves become entry points for hostile actors, turning surveillance systems into intelligence-gathering tools.
The vulnerabilities were identified through a non-intrusive external assessment, indicating that the exposed systems are visible from the open internet and could be detected through routine scanning.
The findings have been formally communicated to RailTel, the Ministry of Railways, and the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team as part of a responsible disclosure process, seeking urgent remediation.
“The issues identified are not theoretical. These services are directly exposed on the public internet and can be discovered through basic scanning techniques,” said Jubeen Dubey, a cybersecurity professional associated with a private company, warning that delayed action could lead to unauthorised access and wider system compromise.
The report recommends immediate restriction of exposed services, enforcement of secure access protocols and urgent patching of vulnerable systems.
