BENGALURU: It has been just eight months since the only Cyber Crime Police Station in the city was set up, but it has already registered the highest number of complaints among all the 110 police stations in Bengaluru, with 1,500 cases as on November 15. This is also the highest in the state, considering that it was established as recently as March 28 this year. If petitions related to minor offences are also included, the number of cases exceeds 3,000.
While the Cyber Crime Police Station gives an avenue for victims of internet fraud to seek redressal, the downside is that the police personnel have been able to detect only 73 cases so far — where a chargesheet has been filed or the case disposed of. Data reveals that instances of Vishing or Voice Phishing, skimming and job frauds are more compared to other cases filed at this station.
Cyber experts welcome the frequency at which the cases are being filed - stating that it indicates people are growing more aware of such frauds. Eventually, more personnel and stations will be required to handle cyber crime complaints.
The low detection of such cases is due to several factors such as lack of adequately skilled personnel, lack of convergence between various agencies and the elusive nature of some cyber criminals. Police sources say these factors have rendered the cyber crime police station handicapped. To make matters worse, companies such as banks and social media companies neither cooperate nor share the required case details promptly.
A police offical who did not want to be named, said, “There are many cases which are committed from different states. With staff crunch, we cannot afford to send them on outstation visits often.”
The Bengaluru Cyber Crime Police Station has only 22 police personnel. In fact, station inspector Yeshwanth Kumar is also given additional charge of the Central Crime Branch (CCB) Women and Narcotics Wing.
Social media crimes
Cyber crimes on social media such as revenge porn, morphing, misuse and misrepresentation of facts to defame a person have become common. Here too, only a few cases meet a logical end. Cyber crime police officials say social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter do not respond to queries citing their privacy policies. Moreover, delay on the part of the complainants in filing cases also affects the cases from being cracked, an official said. The cyber crime police station has not seen any modernisation. It depends on the only cyber laboratory of the state which is under the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the official added.
What’s Vishing?
Voice phishing is an electronic fraud technique where people are tricked to reveal their personal and financial info for financial reward.
Skimming
Skimming is theft of credit card information used in a legitimate transaction. It is typically an ‘inside job’ by an employee of a legitimate merchant.
Social media cases
Cases under this category fall under a large ambit, which involve trolling, online abuse, harassment and impersonation.