Key Points

In 2024, Delhi citizens lost Rs 817 crore in 1,591 cybercrime incidents, Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs Nityanand Rai told Lok Sabha in a written reply.

The MoS said the number of cyber financial fraud cases registered in Delhi in 2023 was 1,347, and the money lost by victims in such incidents added up to Rs 183 crore.

In 2022, Delhiites lost Rs 231 crore in 1,545 cyber frauds, and in 2021, as many as 1,630 cyber fraud matters left residents of the National Capital by Rs 91 crore, said Rai.

Sharing national-level cyber crime data related to 2022 collated by the National Crime Records Bureau, the MoS suggested that Telangana has the highest financial crime rate of 40.3 per cent in the country. The all-India cyber crime rate, calculated on the basis of NCRB’s data for 2022, stands at 4.8.

Telangana was followed by Karnataka in terms of cybercrime rate in 2022, the MoS said. The state reported 647 crimes for a population of 12,556 lakh – a cyber crime rate of 18.6.

Among Union Territories, Puducherry and Delhi lead the notorious list with crime rates of 3.9 and 3.2.

The cyber crime rate is calculated by taking the population of a state or a UT in lakhs and dividing it by the number of such cases of fraud reported in that state or UT in a year.

The MoS said as part of counter-cyber crime measures, the Delhi Police has set up IFSO (Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations), equipped with the latest equipment and software to investigate complex and sensitive cases of cyber-crimes.

Besides, one Cyber Police Station in each of the 15 Districts of Delhi Police has become functional since 2022 to deal with cybercrime-related cases in Delhi, he said.

Help desks at all police stations are equipped to assist women affected by cybercrimes.

A specialised Unit SPUWAC (Special Police Unit for Women and Children) is also functioning in the Delhi Police to handle such cases with sensitivity and urgency, said Rai.

- IANS