Hyderabad, July 30 (IANS) The Centre has undertaken various initiatives to create cybercrime awareness, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday.

Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Jitin Prasada listed out the steps taken by the government in his reply to a question by Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi.

The minister stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about frauds like digital arrests during ‘Mann Ki Baat’ on October 27, 2024, creating awareness amongst the people.

Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has launched a caller tune campaign from December 19, 2024, for raising awareness about cybercrime and promoting the Cybercrime Helpline Number 1930 and NCRP portal.

The MoS said that the Central Government launched a comprehensive awareness programme on digital arrest scams, which, inter alia, includes: newspaper advertisement, announcement in metros, use of social media to create awareness, campaign through Prasar Bharti and electronic media and special programme on Aakashvani.

To further spread awareness on cybercrime, the Central Government has taken steps which, inter-alia, include; dissemination of messages through SMS, I4C social media account i.e. X (@CyberDost), Facebook(CyberDostI4C), Instagram (CyberDostI4C), Telegram(cyberdosti4c), SMS campaign, TV campaign, Radio campaign, School Campaign, advertisement in cinema halls, celebrity endorsement, IPL campaign, campaign during Kumbh Mela 2025, engaged MyGov for publicity in multiple mediums, organizing Cyber Safety and Security Awareness weeks in association with States/UTs, publishing of Handbook for Adolescents/Students, digital displays on railway stations and airports across, etc.

The minister stated policies of the Union Government are aimed at ensuring an open, safe, trusted and accountable cyberspace for all users in the country. The government remains conscious of the challenges of cybersecurity and cybercrime.

He mentioned that the States/UTs are primarily responsible for the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of crimes, including cybercrime through their Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs).

The Central Government supplements the initiatives of the State Governments through various advisories and schemes for the capacity building of their police personnel, he said.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has set up the ‘Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre’ (I4C) to deal with cybercrimes. I4C has launched National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) (https://cybercrime.gov.in) to submit cybercrime complaints. Users can lodge complaints online, upload relevant evidence, and track the progress of their cases.

A toll-free Helpline number ‘1930’ has also been operationalised to get assistance in lodging online cyber complaints.

Cybercrime incidents reported on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, their conversion into FIRs and subsequent action i.e. filing of charge sheets, arrest, and resolution of complaints, are handled by the State/UT Law Enforcement Agencies concerned as per the provisions of the law, he added.

–IANS

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