BENGALURU: Karnataka recorded 96 cybercrimes against children in 2024, with 77 cases involving Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), accounting for nearly 80% of the total, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data analysed by Child Rights and You (CRY).
The number of cybercrimes against children in the state declined sharply from 363 cases in 2023 to 96 in 2024. However, the figure remains significantly higher than the 25 cases reported in 2018. Karnataka had recorded zero such cases in 2017.
Bengaluru City reported the highest number of CSAM-related cases in Karnataka in 2024, with 23 cases. Hassan and Uttara Kannada followed with seven cases each, while Mandya and Belagavi City reported five cases each. Dakshina Kannada, Kolar, Mangaluru City, Ramanagara and Udupi recorded three cases each. Gadag and KGF reported two cases each, while Bengaluru district, Ballari, Bidar, Chikkaballapura, Chamarajanagar, Chikkamagaluru, Davanagere, Kalaburagi, Koppal, Mysuru City and Kalaburagi City recorded one case each.
At the national level, cybercrimes against children increased nearly 20-fold from 88 cases in 2017 to 1,753 cases in 2024. During the same period, CSAM-related offences rose from seven to 1,099 cases.
CRY said the figures highlight the risks children face online, including cyberbullying, online grooming, image-based abuse, misinformation, privacy breaches and digital exploitation.
Against this backdrop, CRY has launched its nationwide ‘Ting Tong’ campaign to promote safer digital behaviour among children. The campaign encourages children to pause before trusting, clicking or sharing anything online, while also focusing on awareness among parents, caregivers and educators.
