As human life becomes increasingly digital, cybercrimes are also on the rise. Individuals and organizations are increasingly exposed to cybercrime thanks to the widespread use of electronic devices that enable Internet access.
The city of Hyderabad, which is also an IT hub, has now emerged as a major center for cybercrime. According to National Crime Record Bureau NCRB data, Telangana contributed about 10% to the country’s total cyber fraud in 2020.
In Telangana, at a rate of 13.4 cases per lakh population, the number of cybercrimes shot up from 2,691 cases in 2019 to 5,024 in 2020, according to the NCRB’s Crime in India-2020 report.
Telangana experienced a twofold increase in cybercrime in 2021. During the year, 8,828 cases of cybercrime were reported. In these cases, 5,833 were major offenses, and 1,191 were cases of online fraud and impersonation.
Frauds related to customer care, advertisement portals, jobs, loans, and banks were classified as major offenses. Online impersonation frauds, cyber stalking, phishing, and obscene content are other crimes. Most of the scams involve unified payment interface (UPI) schemes, in which fraudsters trick victims into scanning QR codes in order to receive payment.
The Hyderabad Police alone reported 5,646 cybercrimes in 2020, compared to 1,379 in 2019.
According to Hyderabad Police Commissioner C.V. Anand, every fifth First Information Report (FIR) in Hyderabad pertains to cybercrime. Around 100 FIRs are filed each day in the city, and about 20 percent of them are related to cyber crimes such as social media fraud, financial fraud, hacking and sexual harassment.
About 45 percent of all cybercrime cases involve UPI scams, followed by 15 percent by OTP fraud, phone customer service, investment fraud, and other forms of cybercrime.
Cybercrime increased during the Covid-19 pandemic as many senior citizens avoided going out and made payments from their homes using internet portals and e-wallets.
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