- Of late, people have noticed an alarming rise in cybercrimes, most notably, digital arrests perpetrated by cyber crooks on the gullible with great concern. Such incidents are reported quite frequently in some of the country’s major cities wherein technically qualified professionals too fall prey to the guiles of the crooks operating with such conviction. Consequently, hard-earned money and sometimes life earnings are being lost due to the mechanism adopted by cyber crooks playing on the emotions of people worried about their reputations getting sullied. It’s not only fascinating but also intriguing to note how professionals from the IT field are also getting conned. One can imagine what would happen to scores of people from other fields.
PC: Freepik
- The Indian police has laid great emphasis on strengthening the cyber security aspects by infusing trained manpower and mechanisms to take on the crooks. However, our law enforcement agencies are not adequately equipped to handle the increasing cases of cybercrimes around the country. The latest stalking scores of susceptible citizens are all about digital arrest fraud. Fear of the state makes people fall for digital arrest. Police must solve such crimes expeditiously. Thankfully, PM Modi has spoken about the menace of the latest big-ticket cyberfraud and digital arrests, investigators should finally accord the crime top billing. But for that GOI must expand capacity and infra, to allow law enforcement to come down hard on these gangs.
- Here, the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with Cambodia and Myanmar, from where cybercriminals are known to operate, must be put to good use. Digital arrests work as a criminal strategy because they exploit an individual’s fear of the state. Among common tactics employed are accusing the victim that illicit activity has been carried out using the individual’s Aadhaar number or multiple Aadhaar numbers have been issued using the target’s phone number. Since Aadhaar, as a tech, is vulnerable and has indeed been used to swindle identities, it’s not unthinkable for the victim to believe some fraud may have been perpetrated. When a uniformed cop speaking from a police station reads you the riot act, most Indians are bound to balk.
PC: Freepik
- Why? Simply because no Indian police force is civilian-oriented. For people, they are the state. It is this fear of the state that scammers prey upon. Fear of wrongful arrest, jail without bail, and perceptions of police corruption make the average Indian putty. Modi’s talk, hopefully, will embolden people to file reports. Far too many go quiet after being scammed. Financial privacy is one reason, the other is a sense of shame. Targets in digital arrests are carefully selected – those with savings who may have received some lumpsum, often retirees, or inheritors. For people educated and with careers, shame at being swindled hits hard. But that’s the psychological twist of fraud. Police should build enough trust in people to make them approach fearlessly.
