Cyber Crime Prevention in India: Strategies, Laws, and Initiatives

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) releases annual statistics about crimes through its publication titled “Crime in India”. The State/UT-wise cyber crime and communication device fraud data from 2018 to 2022 appears in the latest 2022 cyber-crime report released by National Crime Records Bureau. Cybercrime describes criminal acts committed through computers and their accessories toward unlawful criminal activity.

Legal Framework and Responsibilities

• Law Enforcement Agencies: Under the Constitution of India in the 7th Schedule the Authority to enforce laws belongs to Police and Public Order to Law Enforcement Agencies. States alongside Union Territories maintain the fundamental duty to stop cyber crimes alongside their tasks of crime detection and criminal investigation work up until prosecution.

• Central Government: Through various financial schemes and advisory support the Central Government aids State/UT efforts to develop capabilities against cyber crime.

Key Initiatives by the Central Government

• Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C):

  • The Ministry of Home Affairs created I4C to provide coordinated comprehensive supervision in fighting cyber crimes.

• National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP):

  • Public reporting platform: https://cybercrime.gov.in

  • Focuses on cyber crimes against women and children.

  • The law requires State/UT LEAs to manage incidents based on their designated authority.

• Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System:

  • The system became operational in 2021 as a quick solution to report financial frauds.

  • Toll-free Helpline ‘1930’ operationalized.

  • The reporting system saved Rs. 4,386 Crore which fraudsters attempted to steal from 13.36 Lakh complaints to the system.

• National Cyber Forensic Laboratory (Investigation):

  • The new forensic laboratory opened its doors at New Delhi for providing support in early forensic investigations.

  • Has processed 11,835 cyber crime-related cases.

• Cyber Fraud Mitigation Centre (CFMC):

  • An integrated action system against cyber frauds operates through representatives who include leaders from banking, payment aggregators, telecom providers, IT interlinking agencies and State/UT Law Enforcement Authorities.

• Public Awareness Campaigns:

  • Awareness through newspapers, social media influencers, radio campaigns, and Delhi Metro announcements.

  • The public received notification about cyber crime awareness through regional language-based caller tunes.

  • The Prime Minister discussed digital arrest scams in his monthly radio program "Mann Ki Baat" during October 27th.

• Cyber Fraud Prevention Measures:

  • Police authorities blocked 3,962 Skype IDs together with 83,668 WhatsApp accounts that facilitated digital arrest scams.

  • Press releases warn the public against cybercriminals who imitate NCB, CBI and RBI along with other government agencies.

  • The total number of blocked cellular devices reached 7.81 lakh SIM cards and 2,08,469 IMEIs by 28.02.2025.

• Joint Cyber Coordination Teams (JCCTs):

  • Seven Joint Cyber Coordination Teams named Mewat, Jamtara, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Visakhapatnam and Guwahati were newly established.

  • The goal exists to enhance the collective coordination abilities between different LEAs across states.

• Samanvaya Platform:

  • Functions as an MIS platform, cyber crime data repository, and coordination hub.

  • The system shows the locations of criminal activities while it detects connections between states which enables expert support.

  • The investigations and arrests of 6,046 people took place through resolution of 36,296 cyber cases.

• Modernization of Police Forces:

  • The ‘Assistance to States for Modernization of Police’ scheme provides financial support from the Central Government.

  • The government allot resources to purchase advanced forensic machines together with cyber policing instruments and law enforcement training programs.

• International Cooperation & Cyber Crime Coordination:

  • The Ministry of External Affairs uses various countries to conduct cyber dialogues.

  • NCB under CBI serves as the Indian National Central Bureau which swaps information with INTERPOL.

  • The BHARATPOL portal provides a system for Indian LEAs to simplify their international cooperation procedures.

  • The G-7 24/7 network functions as an urgent system for cyber crime-related data preservation requests.

State/UT-wise Cyber Crime Statistics (2020-2022)

• NCRB’s ‘Crime in India’ reports show a significant increase in cyber crime cases from 50,035 (2020) to 65,893 (2022).

• Top Five States with Highest Cyber Crime Cases (2022):

  • Telangana - 15,297 cases

  • Uttar Pradesh - 10,117 cases

  • Karnataka - 12,556 cases

  • Maharashtra - 8,249 cases

  • Andhra Pradesh - 2,341 cases

• Cyber Fraud Cases (2022):

  • Total Cyber Fraud Cases: 17,470

  • Telangana stands as the top state regarding cyber crime reports with 9,581 cases followed by Maharashtra with 2,202 cases and Odisha with 957 cases.

Definition of Cyber Crime

• According to legal standards cybercrime describes criminal acts committed through computers and their accessories toward unlawful criminal activity.

Two Main Types of Cybercrimes

• Almost all computer-based criminal activities fall within these two distinct categories:

  • Criminal activity that targets computers.

  • Criminal activity that uses computers.

• The main targets of computer-based cybercrime include malware through viruses.

• Computer-based criminal activity targeting other crimes utilizes technology to distribute malware and prohibited materials or child erotic content.

List of Cybercrimes and Examples

Cybercrimes consist of monetary offenses and offenses that do not involve currency. Typos and other computer malfunction problems can harm computer hardware along with persons and governmental institutions.

1. Child Pornography OR Child Sexually Abusive Material (CSAM)

• CSAM materials consist of sexually explicit pictures of children when they become victims of sexual abuse or exploitation. According to Section 67 (B) of the IT Act publishing or transmitting electronic data in which children perform sexually explicit actions amounts to a punishable offense.

2. Cyber Bullying

• Electronic devices including computers and mobile phones together with laptops facilitate this form of abuse that qualifies as harassment and bullying.

3. Cyber Stalking

• Electronic communication enables cyber-stalkers to track down others against their known wishes or to sustain repeated communications even when rejection is apparent; they also engage in constant monitoring of internet platforms, email communication and other electronic media.

4. Cyber Grooming

• It refers to particular settings of online relationships between adults and youthful individuals who manipulate them towards sexual situations through mental coercion.

5. Online Job Fraud

• Online Job Fraud exists as an attempt to mislead job searchers through falsified employment propositions that offer better pay and roles.

6. Online Sextortion

• Individuals threaten to share private materials through electronic channels for sexual content or money or sex-related gifts without approval.

7. Phishing

• The fraudulent act of acquiring personal data including customer ID together with passwords along with card details occurs through seemingly authentic emails that these thieves use to trick their victims.

8. Vishing

• The practice of seeking banking credentials occurs through phone-based communication with fraudulent individuals.

9. Smishing

• This mobile phone text message scam redirects targets to different fraudulent phone numbers, websites and dangerous content for download.

10. Sexting

• People frequently use mobile phones to transmit erotic digital content including images, videos, electronic messages, and digital correspondence.

11. SIM Swap Scam

• Criminals abuse direct access to obtain new SIM cards for their craft because these mobile devices enable them to acquire financial transaction alerts and OTPs.

12. Credit Card Fraud or Debit Card Fraud

• An individual steals credit or debit card data for unauthorized purchasing or fund withdrawals from another person's account.

13. Impersonation and Identity Theft

• Making illegitimate transactions with another person’s electronic signature, password, or unique identification characteristic constitutes a violation.

14. Spamming

• People send unauthorized commercial advertisements using email or SMS technology and their related media types.

15. Ransomware

• Malware forces victims to pay money for file access decryption.

16. Viruses, Worms, and Trojans

• Computer viruses are programming entities which intrude systems and modify or corrupt file systems within them.

• Worms serve as replicating threats that duplicate themselves repeatedly.

• Deceptive programs which lead to unauthorized entry into systems operate under the category of Trojans.

17. Data Breach

• Unauthorized access to information.

18. Denial of Services (DoS) Attack

• This specific form of attack functions to block users from accessing their computer resources. 

• An online service gets flooded with multiple traffic sources by DDoS attackers during their attack.

19. Website Defacement

• Such an attack modifies websites to show inappropriate content while also causing their functions to fail.

20. Cybersquatting

• Profiting from another’s trademark through the registration or trafficking or use of domain names constitutes a cyber-crime.

21. Pharming

• The malicious redirection of website visitors to an imitation website is known as a cyber-attack that performs these actions.

22. Cryptojacking

• A surfer uses unauthorized access to mine cryptocurrency through computing resources.

23. Online Drug Trafficking

• Sellers plus shippers and those who engage in illegal substance imports through electronic platforms face prosecution.

24. Espionage

• Unlawful retrieval of data constitutes this action.

How to file a cyber crime complaint in India

• The procedure for submitting online complaints about cybercrimes in India involves accessing the National Crime Reporting Portal.

• To file a cyber crime complaint Indian citizens must use the National Crime Reporting Portal of India.

• National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal

  • The portal enables victims/complainants to make cybercrime complaints through an online platform which includes:

    • Online Child Pornography (CP)

    • Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM)

    • Sexually explicit content such as Rape/Gang Rape (CP/RGR)

    • Other cybercrimes (financial frauds, hacking, ransomware, cryptocurrency crimes, cyber trafficking, etc.)

  • Reporters can submit anonymous complaints about Child Pornography and sexually explicit content through this platform.

• Cyber Crime Helpline Number

  • 155260

Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN)

• The Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology operates the national authority for cybersecurity response known as the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN or ICERT).

• The national agency function of CERT-In includes these responsibilities:

  • Collection, analysis, and dissemination of information on cyber incidents.

  • Forecasting and alerts on cyber security incidents.

  • Coordinating cyber incident response activities.

  • Issuing guidelines, advisories, vulnerability notes, and best practices.

• The National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) functions together with CERT-IN.

Cyber Laws in India

• The main Indian law governing cyber security stands as Information Technology Act 2000 (IT Act 2000).

• The Indian Penal Code from 1860 enables authorities to arrest offenders who participate in cybercrimes.

• The National Cyber Security Policy functions as India's foundation for protecting cyber spaces.

Conclusion

The Central Government operates together with State/UT agencies to establish strong programs for cyber crime prevention. To achieve effective control of cyber crime in India developers must increase awareness while making technological breakthroughs and strengthening legal structures through international cooperation.