Most common cyber crime: Net banking fraud

GURGAON: Higher internet connectivity in Millennium City has also given cyber crimes a bigger playing field. Of the total 759 cases of online crime recorded in the past year by the police, 248 were related to bank fraud, making it the most common among cyber crime cases registered by the police.

According to data released on Saturday, a total of 759 complaints in the past year have kept the cyber crime cell busy. Of these, 248 are related to net banking/credit/debit card fraud, followed by 72 cases of abuse on social networking sites, 68 cases of email ID hacking and 59 complaints of SMS and call abuse.

Increased number of complaints on abuse on the internet led the police to inaugurate a new cyber crime cell in the city earlier this year. Officials blame the alarming numbers on advanced technological expertise and ease of access to information. "Unlike in the preceding years, this year the number of net banking-related crimes have surpassed social media-related complaints. The vulnerability of credit and debit cards and net banking has made it easy for criminals who are just a click away from easy money. They are difficult to investigate and this is why some of the most trying cases this year belong to this category," an officer of the cyber crime cell said.

Yet, it was this year that Inspector Suresh Kumar, head of the cyber crime cell, was adjudged cyber cop of year for his work on cases of online banking fraud. Under his leadership, the department continues to spread awareness on how to beat web criminals.

The cell has approached the problem by taking students into the loop and conducting awareness drives, since they are some of the most frequent users of the Internet and easiest targets.

Complaints received

Hacking of E-mail ID: 68

Defamatory / Offensive emails: 39

Phishing/Anonymous Mails: 07

Facebook Related Complaints: 72

Twitter Related Complaints: 02

Website Hacking: 03

Fake Website: 11

Lottery Fraud: 06

Net Banking/ Credit/Debit Card Fraud: 248

Fraud/ Cheating Through Internet: 64

Forgery through Computer: 01

Cheating Through Mobile: 32

ID Theft through Internet: 10

Posting Personal Information on Internet: 13

Data Theft: 22

Abusive/Offensive/Obscene calls & SMSes: 59

Sexual Harassment/Pornography: 07

Miscellaneous Complaints: 95

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Source: Secondary