NIC selects Zoho to power central government email: Reports
The move, part of India’s ‘digital sovereignty’ push, will migrate 33 lakh official accounts, including PMO’s, to the secure, indigenous Zoho Mail platform
The National Informatics Centre (NIC) has reportedly selected Zoho to power the email system for central government employees following a competitive tender process in 2023.
This migration reportedly involves moving official email accounts, which use domains like nic.in and gov.in, from NIC’s in-house solution to Zoho’s platform. That would mean migrating about 33 lakh government employees, including high-profile email accounts such as the Prime Minister’s Office, to the new platform, say reports.
Security concerns
The move was reportedly partly spurred by a concern that many government employees were using less secure open-source or foreign tools for official work. Zoho, unlike many services, does not rely on advertising revenue from user data, making it more secure.
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But the initiative is also part of a larger “digital sovereignty” push to promote indigenous technology and enhance data security by keeping official communications within the country’s digital ecosystem.
Switch to Zoho Mail
Zoho Mail — part of the broader Zoho Office Suite, which has been integrated into the NIC system — was reportedly approved after a strict and extensive vetting process that included over 20 security audits of its code, data centres, and security practices.
The Union Ministry of Education issued a directive earlier this month to encourage the adoption of the Zoho Suite. High-profile officials, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, have also switched to Zoho Mail for their official communications, say reports.