880 cybercriminals arrested, Rs 44 cr recovered during 2022: Haryana DGP

Haryana Director General of Police P K Agrawal on Thursday said 880 cyber criminals were arrested and Rs 44 crore recovered from them during the year.

Of them, 480 were arrested by the Faridabad and Gurugram police.

The DGP said till December 15, the Haryana Police received 62,089 complaints of cybercrime of which 26,885 have been disposed. In the period, it had also registered 2,016 cases and worked out 605 of them.

Fifty-one cases of cybercrime were registered by police itself. These were cases in which complainants were not coming forward, and 24 of them have already been worked out, he said.

He also said steps are being taken to strengthen the Panchkula-based cyber forensic laboratory by recruiting additional technical hands, according to a statement.

The DGP added that a proposal is under consideration to set up such labs at the police range and commissionerate headquarters.

Additional Director General of Police, Crime Branch, O P Singh said in 2022, extortion through instant loan apps, phishing attacks and social engineering dominated case trends.

"Instant loan apps involve people looking for quick loans and subsequently, social-shaming and blackmailing them into paying many times over. Phishing attacks involve hackers sending fake emails or creating fake websites in an attempt to trick victims into revealing sensitive information such as login credentials or financial information," Singh said.

"These attacks have become increasingly sophisticated with hackers using branding and other tactics to make their emails and websites appear legitimate," he said.

Singh said another area of concern was use of social engineering such as pretexting (creating a fake identity or situation to gain trust), baiting (offering something desirable to lure a victim) and scareware (using fear to manipulate the victim) for influencing individuals into performing actions or divulging sensitive information.

The DGP called upon people and businesses to be vigilant against ever-mutating cybercrime and asked police personnel to fight this new class of crime with even greater vigour in the new year.

Agarwal also urged victims of cybercrime to immediately report cases on helpline number '1930'.

Setting up cyber-desks in police stations has helped in mainstreaming cybercrime and "the initiative has been appreciated by the central government as one of the best practice in the country in gearing up police in fighting cybercrime", he said.

The DGP said the state has 29 police stations and 318 cyber desks now.

During the year, 1,578 police personnel and officers were trained in cybercrime investigation and cyber forensics, according to the statement.

The state police got 18,950 mobile numbers blocked as they were found being used for committing cybercrimes. It also engaged over 72 lakh people and made them aware about cybersecurity measures.

Agrawal urged people to practice cybersecurity measures such as keeping software and security protocols up to date, using strong and unique passwords, being vigilant against phishing attacks and other forms of social engineering, and reporting cybercrime incidents at 1930 within the golden hour so that authorities can block fund-transfer to criminals' accounts.

He also called upon businesses and organisations to have robust incident response plans in place to effectively handle breaches.

As we move into the new year, DGP Agrawal said, "It is extremely important that we stay vigilant and prioritise cybersecurity in order to safeguard society against ever-mutating cyber attacks.