Lok Sabha Question No. 568 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2020-09-16
Subject: Online Frauds and Scams
Ministry: ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Sumedhanand Saraswati

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 568

TO BE ANSWERED ON 16.09.2020

## ONLINE FRAUDS AND SCAMS

## 568.    SHRI SUMEDHANAND SARASWATI:

Will the Minister of ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY  be pleased to state:

- (a)   whether the Government has taken note of the fact that fraudsters use technology to hid their identity and create fake emails and websites and if so, the details thereof and the reaction of the Government thereto;
- (b)   whether the Government has received a number of complaints regarding online frauds and scams in the country;
- (c)    if so, the details thereof and the action taken by the Government thereon; and
- (d)   whether the Government has put in place any mechanism to protect the common man from such frauds and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATES FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI SANJAY DHOTRE)

(a) to (c) : Cyber space is a complex environment of people, software, hardware and services on the Internet. With a borderless cyberspace coupled with the possibility of instant communication and anonymity, the potential for misuse of cyberspace including identity theft, creation of fakeemails and websites is a global issue.  As per the information reported to and tracked by Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) a total of 454, 472 and 194 phishing incidents were observed during the year 2018, 2019 and 2020 (till August) respectively. Further, a total of 6,  4  and  2  financial  fraud  incidents  affecting  ATMs,  Cards,  Point-of-  Sale  (PoS)  systems  and Unified Payment Interface (UPI) have been reported during the year 2018, 2019 and 2020 (till August) respectively.

(d): 'Police' and 'Public Order' are State subjects as per the Constitution of India. States/UTs are  primarily  responsible  for  prevention,  detection,  investigation  and  prosecution  of  crimes through  their  law  enforcement  machinery.  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs  (MHA)  supports  State Government initiatives through the various schemes and advisories.

Government has taken several steps to prevent such cyber security incidents and improving cyber safety in the country. These, inter alia , include :

- i) CERT-In is working in coordination with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Banks to track and disable phishing websites.
2. ii) CERT-In issues alerts and advisories regarding latest cyber threats and countermeasures on regular basis to ensure safe usage of digital technologies. Regarding securing digital payments, 37advisories have been issued for users and institutions.
3. iii) Security tips have been published for users to secure their Desktops, mobile/smart phones and preventing phishing attacks.
4. iv) All authorised entities/banks issuing Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) in the country have  been  advised  by  CERT-In  through  Reserve  bank  of  India  to  carry  out  special  audit  by empanelled auditors of  CERT-In on  a priority  basis  and  to  take  immediate  steps  thereafter  to comply with the findings of the audit report and ensure implementation of security best practices.
- v) Government  has  empanelled  90  security  auditing  organisations  to  support  and  audit implementation of Information Security Best Practices.
6. vi) Government has launched the Cyber Swachhta Kendra (Botnet Cleaning  and  Malware Analysis Centre). The centre is providing detection of malicious programs and free tools to remove the same.
7. vii) Ministry of Electronics  &  Information Technology is conducting programs to generate information security awareness. Specific books, videos and online materials are developed for children, parents and general users about information security which are disseminated through Portals like 'www.infosecawareness.in', and 'www.cyberswachhtakendra.gov.in'.

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