Cybercrime pendency rose in two-thirds of states in 2020: NCRB data

Chargesheeting, which indicates the rate of disposal of crime cases by the police, declined in nearly half the states when compared to 2019

Earlier this year, the home ministry informed the Parliament that cybersecurity-related incidents had increased three times in 2020 as compared to 2019. Quoting CERT-In data, the ministry said that 1.16 million cybersecurity-related incidents were reported to the agency; in contrast, in 2019, 394,499 incidents were observed. Compared to 2017, cybersecurity incidents increased nearly 20-times.

National Crime Record Bureau data for 2020, released in September, posits a similar trend, but the scale and intensity with regard to cybercrime are much reduced.

According to NCRB, cybercrime incidents increased 1.1-times compared to 2019 and have only increased 2.3-times since 2017. Although cybercrime and cybersecurity incidents are not entirely related, the wide gap between the two illustrates how far we lag in cyber-reporting.

While a major reason for this is awareness and the absence of specified laws, most people also try to brush the incidents under the carpet to avoid further controversy.

NCRB data illustrates another reason. While cybercrime cases have invariably increased in most states—Karnataka and Rajasthan were an exception as they recorded lower cases in 2020 than the year before—the pendency has also increased. The police are indeed taking more time to solve the cases. In nearly half of Indian states, for which data is available, it has been able to solve fewer cases.  

Chargesheeting, which indicates the rate of disposal of crime cases by the police, was lower in thirteen states in 2020 compared to 2019. Of the 27 states/UTs for which data was available, fourteen recorded an increase in the chargesheeting rate.

Tamil Nadu recorded the highest decline, with the chargesheeting rate reducing from 76.9 per cent in 2019 to 53.1 per cent in 2020. West Bengal, Telangana, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh were some of the other states which witnessed a decline in the chargesheeting rate.

The performance was even worse in terms of incidences of pendency. Of the 33 states and UTs for which data was available with NCRB, 22 recorded a rise in pendency in cybercrime-related cases.

NCRB data further shows why cybercrime cases had a worse performance as compared to other crimes. The chargesheeting rate in terms of total crimes was 75.8 per cent in 2020; in cybercrime cases, it was just 47.5 per cent. The chargesheeting rate increased 8.6 percentage points for all cases; the increase was 8.4 percentage points for cybercrime cases.

The conviction rate for cybercrimes was higher than the total conviction rate. In cybercrime cases, the conviction rate was 68.3 per cent, whereas it was 59.2 per cent in the case of all crimes.

So, a chargesheeted case had better chances of reaching conviction in cybercrime cases.

A significant reason for cybercrime cases not reaching the chargesheeting or prosecution stage is the absence of resources. An earlier analysis by Business Standard had shown that only 13,000 laptops were available for a 2.1 million police force in the country (https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/cyber-ready-india-s-2-1-mn-police-personnel-had-13-000-laptops-in-2019-121091400418_1.html). There were 7.3 computers per 100 police personnel in India. And, in only five states/UTs across the country, was one computer available for every ten police personnel in 2019.

A CAG audit of Delhi police had found that of the 142 personnel in the cybercrime unit, only five had a technical qualification, 15 had training, and 35 were proficient in computers.

It was only last year that the government set up the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre and started the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal for easier reporting of cybercrimes.