Losses due to cybercrime in Kerala surge in 2024, prompt stronger law enforcement measures-OxBig News Network

Losses due to cybercrime saw a significant surge in Kerala in 2024, nearly quadrupling from the previous year.

Among the most prevalent scams were those related to job opportunities and online trading, with nearly three-fourths of cybercrime victims falling prey to these types of fraud.

Ernakulam city topped the State in terms of the highest financial losses, followed closely by Thiruvananthapuram city and the Ernakulam rural police districts.

In 2024, the State witnessed a staggering 41,426 cybercrime complaints, compared to 23,748 complaints in 2023 and 9,619 in 2022. The losses linked to these fraudulent activities in 2024 skyrocketed to a staggering ₹763 crore, compared to ₹201 crore in 2023 and ₹48 crore in 2022.

However, proactive efforts by the Kerala Police and other agencies have shown positive results. The total amount recovered from scams in 2024 stood at ₹107.44 crore, nearly three times the ₹37.16 crore recovered the previous year. In addition, authorities successfully froze 75,922 fraudulent transactions to the tune of ₹107.49 crore.

Specialised training

Ankit Asokan, Superintendent of Police, Cyber Operations, highlighted that the evolving cyber fraud landscape had spurred the Kerala Police to bolster their capabilities. To address the growing threat, 40 police personnel are undergoing specialised six-month training by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs. These ‘cyber commandos’ are also visiting premier institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology and the National Forensic Sciences University in Gandhinagar to hone their cybersecurity skills.

Furthermore, nearly 150 Kerala Police personnel have recently taken preliminary tests for the next batch of the cyber commando training programme. Emphasising the crucial role of cybersecurity in national security, the Union government aims at training 5,000 cyber commandos across the country over the next five years.

Besides, several officers of the cyber operations division had been deputed for training in dark web, cybersecurity, cryptocurrency and open source intelligence in institutions such as the National Technical Research Organisation and Data Security Council of India.