A 22-year-old man, Faiyaz Ali, was arrested in Bhadohi, Uttar Pradesh, for allegedly creating fake Instagram accounts to circulate child sexual abuse material and explicit chats. The arrest followed a tip-off from the Union home ministry's Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C), which flagged an Instagram account with objectionable content. Police traced the account to Ali and apprehended him while he was attempting to flee.
The Indian government has ordered the removal of Jack Dorsey's Bitchat app from app stores, citing law-and-order concerns due to its ability to bypass communication restrictions. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued the takedown demand under Section 69(A) of the IT Act, 2000. The government also addressed the issue of banning minors from social media, indicating a search for a better solution than outright bans.
Search engine major Google will also start sharing details of child sexual abuse cases and repeat offenders with the cybercrime division of the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The Indian government has ordered the removal of Jack Dorsey's Bitchat app from app stores in India, citing law-and-order concerns. The Bluetooth messaging app, which allows offline communication, was previously scrutinised during protests by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and has now been pulled from both Apple's App Store and the Play Store following the IT Ministry's directive.
Apple has removed the offline messaging app Bitchat from its India App Store following a demand from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). Developed by Jack Dorsey, Bitchat faced scrutiny under Section 69(A) of the IT Act, 2000, due to concerns about its potential misuse by anti-national elements and for evading lawful surveillance, especially during public disorder. This marks the second time the app has faced government action in India.
'Details of accounts such as the name, email id associated with the account, the IP address will now be shared with law enforcement agencies, which will help track down offenders faster.'
Meta has agreed to report child safety-related matters, including child sexual abuse cases, to appropriate law enforcement agencies in India, government sources confirmed, emphasising that online safety for children is a "non-negotiable" fundamental principle for social media platforms operating in the country.
An IIT Madras study reveals that financial cybercrime victims in India are often highly educated professionals, challenging the notion that only careless or financially unaware individuals are targeted. The research highlights that digital literacy doesn't guarantee protection, as fraudsters exploit stress and emotional vulnerabilities.
Top Meta India executives, including chief Arun Srinivas, appeared before the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) for the second time in a week regarding alleged Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM) related advertisements on its platforms. Meta has committed to reporting child safety matters directly to India's I4C cybercrime portal, a significant shift from its previous practice of reporting to a US-based centre. The government is pushing for stronger safeguards and accountability from social media platforms to ensure online child safety.
Delhi Police arrested over 600 people and rounded up over 8,300 suspects during Operation CyHawk 4.0, a large-scale crackdown on cybercrime.
Delhi Police arrested over 600 individuals and detained over 8,300 suspects during Operation CyHawk 4.0, a major crackdown on cybercrime. The operation targeted financial networks and call centres involved in online scams, recovering significant digital evidence and tracing defrauded money.
Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch has uncovered a Rs 1.5 crore WhatsApp fraud, leading to the arrest of two key SIM and OTP suppliers in West Bengal. The investigation revealed a sophisticated international cybercrime network spanning China, Pakistan, India, and Hong Kong, operating a "boss scam" and utilizing a "Cybercrime as a Service" model. Police recovered a significant portion of the defrauded amount and secured thousands of devices.
The Supreme Court has directed the Reserve Bank of India to prepare a standard operating procedure (SOP) within four weeks to deal with bank accounts linked to cyber frauds, including mule accounts. This directive is part of a broader effort to strengthen responses to cyber-enabled financial frauds, with the court also urging states and UTs to adopt and operationalise grievance redressal and money restoration modules.
Government sources state that Meta, due to its algorithmic amplification of content, can no longer be considered a "simple intermediary" but rather a "service provider," implying greater responsibility and potential loss of legal immunity. This shift comes as Meta commits to directly reporting child abuse content to Indian law enforcement, amidst increasing government scrutiny over harmful online content and algorithmic bias.
Started as a pilot project for Delhi, the new system will automatically convert into FIRs cyber financial crimes filed on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP) and helpline number 1930, initially above the threshold limit of Rs 10 lakh, he said.
India's markets regulator, Sebi, has issued a warning to listed companies and regulated entities about an emerging cyber fraud known as the "Boss Scam." This scam involves fraudsters impersonating senior officials like CEOs or MDs to trick finance teams into transferring funds, often using advanced AI tools or malicious software. Sebi advises organisations to verify requests independently and report incidents to prevent financial losses.
The Centre on Thursday informed the Delhi high court that the Telegram messaging app was being exploited for illegal activities ranging from cybercrime and financial frauds to terrorism and circulation of leaked examination papers.
Do not share OTPs, PINs, authentication codes, card numbers, card verification values (CVVs), KYC details, security answers, Internet-banking passwords or Aadhaar-based authentication credentials through SMS, e-mail or phone calls.
The Indian government is integrating artificial intelligence into the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS) 2.0 to enhance crime tracking, criminal profiling, and predictive policing across the country.
According to sources, the attack on the servers of AIIMS-Delhi is suspected to have originated from locations in China and Hong Kong.
The attack on the computer server of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi was carried out by Chinese hackers, a senior government source said on Wednesday adding that data in the five servers have been successfully retrieved now.
Telangana Cyber Security Bureau (TGCSB) arrested five individuals for supplying over 600 Indian SIM cards to a cyber fraud syndicate operating from Cambodia, which defrauded Indian citizens of crores of rupees.
Gujarat police have dismantled a Rs 77 crore cyber fraud operation with links to 375 cases nationwide, arresting 16 individuals and uncovering international connections.
A man has been arrested in Rajasthan for his alleged involvement in an illegal Aadhaar enrolment racket, where fake Aadhaar cards were generated using manipulated biometric data.
The senior IPS officer said that 45 percent of cyber financial frauds taking place in the country are originating from the South East Asia.
Gujarat police arrest a woman allegedly involved in trafficking job aspirants to Myanmar and Thailand for cyber slavery. The accused lured people with promises of high-paying jobs and forced them to work for international cyber crime syndicates.
A case of extortion and cyber terrorism was registered by the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations unit of the Delhi police on November 25.
By enabling real-time data sharing, the platform will help prevent scams and ensure secure transactions.
The Indian Embassy in Thailand, in coordination with its counterpart in Yangon, Myanmar, has repatriated 549 Indians after rescuing them from scam centers operating near the Myanmar-Thailand border. The nationals were lured with fake job offers and forced to work in scam centers. The Indian Embassy has advised citizens to verify credentials of foreign employers and check the antecedents of recruiting agents before accepting job offers.
The advisory depicted the logos of social media platforms like WhatsApp and Skype to showcase that calls for such scams are made using such platforms.
'A mule operates someone else's account to transfer illegal money.'
A new cyber fraud known as 'pig butchering scam' or 'investment scam' has emerged, targeting unemployed youths, housewives, students, and needy people who are made to lose large sums of money daily, according to the latest annual report of the Union home ministry.
UPI-related frauds have accounted for a cumulative loss of Rs 2,145 crore across 2.7 million reported incidents.
Users should be aware of "fake emails" sent in the garb of a government e-notice, said the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) in a public advertisement.
The ministry of home affairs (MHA) has sent a high-level team to Ayodhya to deal with cyber threats ahead of the inauguration of the Ram Temple in the historical town on January 22.
The number of cyberfraud cases has skyrocketed from 2,677 in 1999-2000 to 29,082 in FY24 -- more than a 10-fold increase. The RBI pegs digital payment frauds at Rs 1,457 crore in FY24, up more than five times in a year. It's not just the number of frauds. What's alarming is the growing sophistication of the fraudsters, exposing the vulnerabilities within the financial system, observes Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
The directions follow a report by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, which has seen a new pattern of transnational cyber-enabled financial fraud and investment scam, impersonating as stockbrokers and company executives.
The volunteers are asked to keep an eye on posts which are against the sovereignty and integrity of India, against the defence of India, against the security of the state, against friendly relations with foreign states, content aimed at disturbing public order, disturbing communal harmony and child sex abuse material.
This is the joint statement issued by the ministry of external affairs on the visit of US President Barack Obama to India.
