Lok Sabha Question No. 3222 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-03-21
Subject: Scam by Fraudsters
Ministry: HOME AFFAIRS
Asked by: Srinivas Kesineni

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3222

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 21 ST  MARCH, 2023/ PHALGUNA 30, 1944 (SAKA)

SCAM BY FRAUDSTERS

3222.      SHRI KESINENI SRINIVAS:

Will the Minister of HOME AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government is aware of the incidents of frauds committed by fraudsters by masking their identity and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether the Government is aware of the fact that the fraudsters mask their identity to extort money from common citizens; and

(c)  if  so,  the  steps  that  are  being  taken  by  the  Government  in  order  to mitigate  such  scams  and  also  ensure  the  confidentiality  of  a  number  of important public servants and representatives?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS (SHRI AJAY KUMAR MISHRA)

(a) to (c): With  enhanced  use  of  cyber  space,  frauds  committed  by fraudsters by masking their identity is also increasing.  'Police' and 'Public Order' are State subjects as per the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of  India.  The  States/UTs  are  primarily  responsible  for  the  prevention, detection,  investigation  and  prosecution  of  crimes  including  cyber crime through  their  Law  Enforcement  Agencies  (LEAs).  The  law  enforcement agencies take legal action as per the provisions of law against persons

involved in cyber fraud. The Central Government  supplements  the initiatives  of  the  States/UTs  through  advisories  and  financial  assistance under various schemes for their capacity building.

To    strengthen    the    mechanism    to    deal    with    cyber    crimes including cyber fraud  in  a comprehensive  and  coordinated  manner,  the Central  Government  has taken  steps  for  spreading  awareness  about cyber  crimes,  issuance  of  alerts/ advisories, capacity building/ training of      law    enforcement personnel/ prosecutors/ judicial officers, improving cyber forensic facilities, etc. The Government has established the 'Indian Cyber Crime Coordination  Centre'  (I4C)  to  provide  a  framework  and  ecosystem  for  LEAs  to  deal  with  cyber  crimes  in  a  comprehensive  and coordinated  manner.  The  'Citizen  Financial  Cyber  Fraud  Reporting  and Management  System'  has  been  launched  for  immediate  reporting  of financial  frauds  and  to  stop  siphoning  off  fund  by  the  fraudsters.  The Government  has  launched  the  'National  Cyber  Crime  Reporting  Portal' (www.cybercrime.gov.in) to enable the public to report all types of cyber crimes. A toll-free Helpline number '1930' has been operationalized to get assistance in lodging online cyber complaints.

To  spread  awareness  on  cyber  crime  among  all  the  citizens,  the Central Government has taken steps which, inter-alia, include; dissemination  of messages  through  SMS,  I4C  social  media  account i.e. Twitter handle (@Cyberdost), Facebook(CyberDostI4C), Instagram (cyberdosti4c), Telegram(cyberdosti4c), Radio campaign, engaged MyGov for publicity in multiple mediums, publishing of 'Information Security Best Practices'  for  the  benefit  of  Govt.  Officials,  issuance  of  advisories  to Ministries  of  Government  of  India  and  States/UTs,  etc.  The  Ministries  of Government of India have also been requested to organise Cyber Jaagrookta (awareness) Diwas on the first Wednesday of every month. I4C has  organised  training  programme  for  Government  officials  on  Cyber Hygiene. The States/UTs have also been requested to carry out publicity to create mass awareness. MHA has released Manual on 'Cyber Hygiene' for cyberspace. Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) releases a newsletter 'Cyber Pravah' giving latest information on the cyber space. The Manual is available on https://cybercrime.gov.in/Webform/CyberAware.aspx.

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