If there is one area where the government and its regulators cannot be faulted, it is their tireless effort to warn citizens about cybercrime and fraud. All regulators, banks, stock exchanges, depositories, financial intermediaries and telecom companies are now mandated to warn people about various types of digital fraud. Apart from the engaging and humorous education material created by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi himself cautioned people not to panic and succumb to the threat of ‘digital arrest’ in his radio talk Mann ki Baat.
And yet, not a day goes by without media reports highlighting cases of individuals—often those who ought to know better, such as engineers, even IIT graduates, bureaucrats, or judges—losing large sums of money to fraudsters.
Why is it that a month after the PM told explained that there is ‘no legal concept’ of digital arrest and that enforcement agencies would not ask for personal details over a call, victims are still willing to break fixed deposits and investments and transfer their savings to fraudsters posing as cops or investigation agencies?
The reasons are not hard to find. First, the barrage of warnings has turned spammy, leading people to tune out. The focus needs to shift from quantity to quality, a point we will explore further.
Second, the threat of social stigma and fear of arrest—exacerbated by slow judicial processes, corruption and the way enforcement agencies treat people—push victims to act irrationally.
Third, the political environment of the past decade has made the threat of arrest over false charges or entrapment alarmingly credible. High-profile cases of chief ministers, ministers and respected social activists being jailed under draconian laws, only to be released years later for lack of evidence, have created fertile ground for panic-driven scams.
Scammers exploit this climate with a well-crafted arsenal of threats. They range from claims of drugs, weapons or contraband being found in a courier parcel addressed to the victim, to accusations of illegal activity linked to their bank accounts. The sophistication increases with artificial intelligence (AI) which enables scams involving a loved one allegedly being in danger of arrested. Even those with spotless records know that proving innocence can be a long, humiliating and expensive ordeal. In a country where corruption is rampant, fraudulent offers to make such ‘problems’ disappear often appear credible.
At a Moneylife Foundation event on 17th December, advocate Prashant Mali, who has a doctorate in cyber law and cyber warfare explained that cybercrime victims often include those who are neither ignorant nor naïve. His clients include engineers, technology experts, bureaucrats and even judges. This underscores that cybercrime is not limited by educational qualifications or professional expertise; it exploits human emotions like fear and urgency.
This column will not catalogue the countless types of cybercrimes proliferating today. Much of that was covered at our programme, Unmasking Cybercrime: Protect Yourself from Digital Threatslast week and regularly in the ‘Fraud Alert’ columns by my colleague Yogesh Sapkale.
Instead, the focus is on why current warnings and advisories have failed and what can be done to address the deeper psychological triggers exploited by cybercriminals to create a sense of panic and urgency. The rate of proliferation of cybercrime is frightening. The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) reported that India lost just under Rs20,000 crore to cybercrime in 2024 with over 1.44mn (million) calls reported on 1930, the cybercrime helpline. Of these, 92,323 fell victim to ‘digital arrest’ and it does not include victims of dating and sextortion frauds who are often too embarrassed to file complaints. Alarmingly I4C predicts that Indians could lose over Rs1.2 lakh crore over the next year to cyber frauds.
Efforts to tackle cyber fraud include Cybersafe, a home ministry initiative of 2022, that links police stations across India to ensure that the phone numbers involved in cybercrime are not reused for a repeat offence. In September 2024, the home ministry launched a Central Suspect Registry which lists 1.4mn persons suspected for involvement in cybercrime. If I4C’s prediction of increase in cybercrime has substance, shouldn’t the home ministry be in mission mode to find ways to tackle this fraud with the coordination tools already in place for such an action?
There are clearly identified centres such as Mewat, Jamtara, the national capital region (NCR) and Kolkata where cybercrime gangs operate with vast resources and infrastructure. What is stopping a coordinated crackdown on these operations? Experts point to the involvement of politically connected individuals and corrupt officials.
So the next best strategy would be to train people to control their responses to fraud callers who have perfected the smooth script and tone of tele-callers as well as rough aggression on enforcement agencies, complete with fake props and backdrops of busy police stations and fake websites.
Nandkumar Saravade, a former IPS officer and founder CEO of Reserve Bank Information Technology Pvt Ltd (ReBIT), believes that the best learning comes from experience. The way to make this happen is gamification. In a version of what is done in mystery shopping, this would randomly target people with the same strategies as the cyber fraudsters in a safe and controlled programme which is run by official agencies or banks. Victims, who part with information, will then be counselled about their mistakes.
Kavi Arya, an IIT professor, has pointed out on LinkedIn, that this is a “standard way of training military personnel, astronauts and others.” Such simulation requires resources to design programmes using AI for various situations and has to be implemented at appropriate scale to make it effective, says Mr Saravade.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) runs such programmes of simulation and gamification. It has resources that belong to depositors themselves – in depositor education and protection fund (DEAF) -- which it can use. If successful, the government should replicate it through the home ministry, because the fear factor is the greatest when AI is used to frighten people into believing that their loved ones have been arrested, caught with drugs or met with an accident.
What is clear is that the current strategy of bombarding people with generic warnings is inadequate. A two-pronged approach is essential. First, government agencies must adhere to the rule of law in letter and spirit to rebuild public trust. Second, immersive training must empower individuals to question and resist fraudulent tactics.
Cybercrime is not only a technological threat; it is a societal challenge that preys on fear, mistrust and systemic inefficiencies. Addressing it requires comprehensive, innovative solutions that instil confidence and resilience in citizens.
Comments
Pragna Mankodi
3 weeks ago
No blaming the govt agencies for initiating actions against suspected culprits. The fact remains that a lot of cash and other assets have been recovered. Those high profile who become victims to such frauds must have committed something that they have to be afraid of. I also had received one such call but didn\'t fall prey to such a fraud.
Gamification can be an effective way to educate the general public.
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Gamification can be an effective way to educate the general public.