Jaipur, May 18 (IANS) In a major relief for citizens whose bank accounts are frozen during investigations into cyber fraud cases, the GRM (Grievance Redressal Mechanism) Module developed by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) has emerged as an effective and transparent solution.

The system has been designed to assist account holders whose bank accounts have been frozen, placed under lien or put on hold due to suspicious transactions identified during cyber crime investigations.

V.K. Singh, Additional Director General of Police (Cyber Crime), said continuous efforts were being made to prevent cyber crimes in the state and provide prompt relief to victims.

He said the GRM Module, introduced as part of this initiative, was proving highly beneficial for the general public. Earlier, affected account holders were often required to make repeated visits to police stations, banks and administrative offices. However, the entire grievance redressal process is now being conducted online in a transparent and accountable manner.

The GRM Module is an online grievance redressal system operating under the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) and the Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS).

Its primary objective is to provide relief to genuine account holders whose accounts have been frozen or placed under lien during cyber crime investigations by ensuring an impartial review of their cases.

Under the GRM process, the account holder is first required to visit the concerned bank branch and submit an application seeking the unfreezing of the account or removal of the lien.

The bank then verifies the applicant’s KYC (Know Your Customer) details and transaction history. Following successful verification, the bank registers the grievance on the GRM portal, generates a unique “Grievance ID”, and forwards the case to the designated police investigating officer at the concerned police station.

The investigating officer then conducts a detailed examination of the transaction trail, checks for suspicious activity and determines the extent of the account’s involvement, if any, in the fraudulent activity.

If required, the account holder’s statement may also be recorded through video conferencing. After completing the inquiry, the officer decides whether to unfreeze the account, remove the lien or dismiss the complaint and informs the bank accordingly.

If a complaint is dismissed at the police station level, the account holder may file an appeal before the district- and state-level Grievance Redressal Officers (GROs).

To ensure transparency and accountability within the GRM system, responsibilities have been assigned at both police and banking levels.

At the police level, responsibilities have been assigned to the DIG at the state level, the Additional Superintendent of Police/DSP at the district level and the investigating officer at the police station level.

At the banking level, a National Nodal Officer, a State Grievance Officer and a Branch Grievance Officer have been designated.

Rajasthan Police has appealed to citizens not to share their bank account details, OTPs or confidential banking information with anyone.

Police also advised that if a person’s bank account is unexpectedly frozen and they believe they are not involved in any wrongdoing, they should immediately contact their bank branch to initiate the GRM process.

–IANS

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