Cyber-related offences have increasingly become a prominent feature in news coverage

DR. PRONAB MOHANTY, IPS,
DIRECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE, CYBER COMMAND, GOVERNMENT OF KARNATAKA

“We are currently living in what can rightly be described as the age of cyber fraud. The phenomenon of so- called “digital arrests” has become so prevalent that clear guidelines were issued just last month by the Hon’ble Supreme Court. Beyond this, numerous other forms of cyber fraud are causing losses amounting to tens of thousands of crores every year. A striking feature of today’s cyber fraud landscape is the profile of those most frequently targeted: the middle class—salaried individuals, retirees, and young earners with disposable income. This marks a distinct shift in how fraud schemes are designed and executed.

Another emerging dimension is the use of AI- and machine learning-enabled tools—such as deepfakes and voice cloning—which have significantly enhanced the sophistication and believability of fraudulent schemes. This represents a new and troubling chapter in the evolution of cybercrime. It is important to stress that cybercrime is not limited to attacks involving technology products alone. In recent years, cyber- related offences have increasingly dominated headlines. Security professionals and cybercrime investigators typically classify cybercrimes into three broad categories. The first category comprises cyber frauds, which are rapidly proliferating. The second includes crimes against women and children, particularly the circulation of online Child Sexual Abuse Material—an issue of grave concern for society at large. The third encompasses what are often described as conventional cybercrimes, such as phishing schemes, hacking, data theft, identity theft, credit card fraud, ransomware attacks, and distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. These crimes have been around for a long time, but they have been relegated to the background, thanks to the proliferation of all other sophisticated cyber frauds.”