• Source:JND
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The Indian government has taken decisive action against digital fraud by blocking over 6.69 lakh SIM cards and 1.32 lakh IMEI numbers, according to the latest police reports as of November 15, 2024. Additionally, over 1,700 Skype IDs and 59,000 WhatsApp accounts used for digital fraud have been identified and blocked by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), which operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, informed the Lok Sabha that the government’s ‘Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System,’ introduced in 2021, plays a vital role in curbing financial fraud. This system enables quick reporting of cyber fraud, helping to prevent the transfer of funds to fraudsters. According to Kumar, this initiative has already led to saving more than Rs 3,431 crore from over 9.94 lakh complaints.

“The I4C has pro-actively identified and blocked more than 1,700 Skype IDs and 59,000 WhatsApp accounts used for digital fraud,” Kumar said in response to a written question.

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To further strengthen efforts against cybercrime and digital fraud, the central government, along with Telecom Service Providers (TSPs), has developed a system to block incoming international spoofed calls that appear to be from Indian numbers. These calls, often used by criminals for scams like fake digital arrests, FedEx frauds, and impersonating government officials, are now being blocked. This measure is going to help citizens from deceptive practices that rely on fake caller IDs.

TSPs have been directed to block such incoming international faked calls. Furthermore, a a State-of-the-Art Cyber Fraud Mitigation Centre (CFMC) has been established at I4C, where representatives from major banks, financial institutions, payment aggregators, TSPs, IT intermediaries, and law enforcement agencies from states and UTs work together to ensure immediate action and seamless cooperation in combating cybercrime.

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Furthermore, to combat digital fraud, I4C launched a "suspect registry" in collaboration with banks and financial institutions on September 10, 2024. This new feature on the portal cybercrime.gov.in, called 'Report and Check Suspect,' allows citizens to search for cyber criminals’ identifiers, providing an additional layer of security and awareness.