Indians Lost Around Rs 11,333 Crore To Cyber Frauds In 2024 Amid Rise In Digital Arrest Scams

Amid concerns regarding digital arrest scams and the increasing number of cyber crimes in India, a data compiled by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), a division of the Ministry of Home Affairs, has revealed that the people lost around Rs 11,333 crore to the cyber scams in the first nine months of 2024.

Out of the total cyber scams, stock trading has accounted for the largest share of the online frauds. The sector has lost Rs 4,636 crore from across 2,28,094 persons. The investment-based scams caused Rs 3,216 crore loss from 1,00,360 complaints, according to the data.

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Notably, digital arrest scams, which have been in the news in the past few months, have caused losses of around Rs 1,616 crore from across 63,481 people. A digital arrest scam is a growing trend of online fraud in the country in which fraudsters pose as law enforcement officials or government agencies and threaten the victims. The victims of the digital arrests include top government officials such as retired Air Force personnel and students, among others.

Around 12 lakh cyber scams were reported in 2024, The Indian Express reported, citing data from the Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS). Over 45% of the online scams were originating from Southeast Asian countries—Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos. The CFCFRMS has recorded 30.05 lakh complaints since 2021, which has led to losses amounting to Rs 27,914 crore.

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A report by Norton last year showed approximately 30 million people in India were victims of cybercrime and the country. The reasons for Indians being the considerable victims of the online scams include the increased digitalization, population and the widespread cyber illiteracy.

Amid the recent spurt in digital arrest frauds, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has alerted citizens regarding the scam during his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ radio program. Underlining that no government agencies would contact citizens via phone or video calls, the prime minister cautioned the people to be vigilant. He asserted that there is no system like digital arrest under the law and stressed the importance of raising awareness to fight these scams.

In the recent weeks, there have been multiple reports of many people losing huge sums of money through the digital arrest frauds.