Mumbai police have been using Helpline number 1930 as a powerful weapon in their battle against cybercrime for the past three years. This week, the number of complaints received surpassed one lakh, and the total sum saved for victims was an astounding INR 241 crore, an official said on April 13.
Mumbai police's cyber wing has been using the helpline since May 17, 2022. It began with six lines but has since expanded to 22 lines and a full posse of constables and officials who work around the clock every day to make sure the city's residents don't become victims of online scammers, official added.
According to the senior official Mumbai police are using a variety of cutting-edge tools and technologies to combat the growing number of financial frauds and cybercrimes, particularly in the past two years.
In order to combat cybercrime, they also have a robust follow-up team that works in tandem with all relevant parties, such as banks, financial institutions, the Reserve Bank of India, and state-specific law enforcement organisations. On 1930, they get over 1500 complaints every day. The total number of complaints surpassed one lakh this on April 11, official said.
The number is 1,01,069 as of April 12. Datta Nalawade, Deputy Commissioner of Police for the Cyber Wing, reported that INR 241,42,11,827 had been saved as a result of prompt action.
The Mumbai police have permanently blocked 8,214 mobile phone SIM cards used for such activities in the face of an increase in cyber frauds, which include promises of high returns on share trading, rewards for tasks, digital arrest, and phone and email hacking, official stated.
Lakhs of rupees are being lost in these scams by even highly qualified individuals, such as senior bank employees, doctors, engineers, and government officials. They are making every attempt to educate Mumbai residents about the dangers of falling for such a tactic. Cybercrime has emerged as the greatest problem of our day, according to the DCP, as the number of instances rises.
Nalawade noted that Mumbai residents have lost INR 1,922 crore to cybercriminals over three years.
The bright side, he added, is that the percentage of victims' money saved is also increasing. Since January of this year, the total has been INR 51 crore.
According to another official associated with the department, the Union Home Ministry's National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, which is linked to all banks and financial institutions, is a key weapon in the fight against the threat.
When someone loses money to a cybercriminal, it is deposited into a bank account, wallet, UPI ID, or other deposit method. Cybercriminals will then use this money to make purchases, withdraw funds, or reroute it to other internet channels, he stated.
By clicking on this portal and calling banks to freeze accounts and stop money, police can almost immediately jump on this money trail, only if people complain on the 1930 helpline promptly, he added, increasing the likelihood that the money will be recovered and returned to the victims. Time is of the essence. The phrase "golden hour" is used; however, in the context of cybercrime, it becomes "golden 15 minutes." The likelihood of recovering money and apprehending cybercriminals increases with the speed of our alerts, the official stated.
He cited a power company that recently lost INR 11.34 crore to internet scammers, of which INR 11.20 crore could be recovered because its employees called the line 1930 right away.
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