Terrorist attackers in Mumbai were better techies, and had better gear than the coppers they ended up fighting, a report has warned.

Each of the terrorists had studied satellite images of the city and were carrying handheld GPS sets and were communicating with their handlers via the Internet and satellite phone. However, most of the Indian police didn't even have walkie-talkies.

Pavan Duggal, a technology expert, said that the terrorists were well aware of the technology available and also knew that the police were several steps behind. And a lot of this technology is extremely easy to use and to learn. He said that India's underfunded and poorly trained police force is simply unable to compete.

Mumbai's chief police investigator, Rakesh Maria, said that to prepare for their November 26th assault, militants examined the layout and landscape of the city using images from Google Earth. They also studied detailed photographs of their targets on laptop computers. They used four GPS systems to navigate and the sets could also be used as walkie-talkies.

The attackers were equipped with a satellite phone and nine mobile phones. They coordinated the attack with handlers in Pakistan using voice-over-Internet telephone services that were routed all over the Internet.

Indian coppers did not have walkie-talkies or mobile phones and a commando unit flown in from New Delhi to take on the attackers had neither night-vision goggles nor thermal sensors, which would have allowed them to pinpoint the locations of attackers and hostages during the siege.

More here.