Ministry of Home Affairs sets up 7 teams to Detect and Prevent Cybercrime across India
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has formed Seven Joint Cyber Coordination Teams (JCCTs) tasked with safeguarding the digital territories of Mewat, Jamtara, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Vishakhapatnam, and Guwahati to combat cybercrime. These teams operate under the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) and utilize state-of-the-art technology. They focus on areas identified as cybercrime hotspots, addressing multi-jurisdictional issues by collaborating with States/Union Territories (UTs) to enhance coordination among law enforcement agencies nationwide, as stated in a response in the Lok Sabha.
According to the Home Ministry, a sequence of workshops took place in key locations including Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Vishakhapatnam, Lucknow, Ranchi, and Chandigarh during the year 2023. Each workshop played a pivotal role in fostering collaboration among various law enforcement agencies, aiming to address the constantly changing challenges posed by cybercrime.
"The 'Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System', under I4C, has been launched for immediate reporting of financial frauds and to stop siphoning off funds by the fraudsters. So far, an amount of more than Rs 1,200 crore has been saved in more than 4.7 lakh complaints. A toll-free helpline number '1930' has been operationalized to get assistance in lodging online cyber complaints", the MHA said.
In its response, the Union Home Ministry stated that the National Cyber Forensic Laboratory (Investigation) in New Delhi conducted training sessions for Investigating Officers (IOs) to address the intricate challenges of cyber investigations. Having supported over 9,000 cases, covering a spectrum from mobile forensics to Call Data Record (CDR) analysis, the laboratory has established itself as a stronghold of justice in the digital domain.
"To date, more than 3.2 lakh SIM cards and 49,000 IMEIs as reported by Police authorities have been blocked by the Government of India. viii. I4C has imparted cyber hygiene training to 6,000 officials of various Ministries/ Departments of the Government of India. I4C has imparted cyber hygiene training to more than 23,000 NCC cadets", the MHA said.
Additionally, the Ministry reported the development of the 'CyTrain' portal, a Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) platform, under the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C). This platform aims to enhance the capacity of police and judicial officers through online courses covering vital topics such as cybercrime investigation, forensics, and prosecution, among others, with the provision of certification. To date, over 76,000 police officers from various states and Union Territories (UTs) have registered on the portal, and more than 53,000 certificates have been awarded.
