In 4 years, cyber frauds in Chandigarh jumped by 56%

As the world progresses towards digitalisation, criminals, too, have been turning to cyber space to defraud gullible people, as evidenced by the 56% spike in cyber crime complaints in Chandigarh since 2019.

While online fraudsters continue to devise new ways to make quick money, police also attribute the rise in complaints to increased awareness among residents, who are promptly reporting these crimes.

As per data available with the Chandigarh Police’s cyber crime cell, a total of 4,793 cyber crime complaints were received in 2019. Four years later, their number has jumped to 7,512 in 2023 so far.

Except 2021, when the city was battling the Covid-19 pandemic, the number of cyber crime complaints have continued to rise steadily (see box).

Sextortion tops the chart

According to cyber cell sleuths, this year, it was complaints related to sexual extortion (or sextortion) that were highest in number.

Out of the total 7,512 complaints received this year, 1,527, the highest, belonged to this category. In April this year, police had arrested a student for blackmailing a woman with objectionable photos and seeking ransom in return.

This was followed by frauds on online market places like OLX, where sellers/buyers are duped by fraudsters posing as army or central forces personnel. Residents falling prey to credit card activation fraud formed the third biggest group of victims.

Awareness is protection: SP

Superintendent of police (Cyber Crime) Ketan Bansal said rising number of complaints was a sign that society was largely aware of prevalent online frauds. “Almost 30% of the total complaints received are from people who managed to save themselves from being duped and denied sharing OTPs or clicking on weblinks. The responsible citizens then approach us about such frauds, which helps us in investigation,” he said.

Urging residents to report such frauds actively at helpline 1930, the SP also advised against sharing OTPs and sensitive information. “Mobile phone users should be aware not to click on weblinks while receiving money, especially while selling something on online platforms. Identity of a friend/relative seeking money over phone should be verified. Promises of lucrative remote jobs and quick returns can be dubious. Residents need to be extremely alert to avoid falling for such scams,” he cautioned.

As part of generating awareness regarding cyber frauds, police have so far visited 62 schools and 250 public places. A total of 3.83 lakh citizens of Chandigarh have participated in the campaigns and have been made aware of how to prevent these frauds, said another police official.