The threat of cyber fraud is continuously increasing in India. The Central Government told the Lok Sabha that between 2021 and 2025, in more than 65.89 lakh cases of online fraud, people were defrauded of more than Rs 55,050 crore. However, the government claims that with the help of CFCFRMS system it has succeeded in saving Rs 11,158 crore. Meanwhile, the NCRB report shows that for the first time in 2024, cyber crime cases in the country have crossed the figure of 1 lakh.
Fraud of Rs 55 thousand crores, claim of saving Rs 11 thousand crores
The central government told the Lok Sabha that between 2021 and 2025, more than 65.89 lakh financial cyber fraud complaints were registered on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal and Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System. In these cases, people reported being cheated of more than Rs 55,050 crore. According to the government, with the help of the CFCFRMS system launched in 2021, Rs 11,158 crore could be saved in more than 32.80 lakh complaints by June 30, 2026. Also, people can lodge complaint immediately through 1930 helpline.
System designed to prevent fraudulent transactions
Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay Kumar told in the Lok Sabha that CFCFRMS has been prepared under the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center i.e. I4C. Its purpose is that as soon as a person complains of online financial fraud, the concerned agencies can take immediate action and stop suspicious transactions. According to the government, because of this mechanism, thousands of crores of rupees have been stopped before reaching the fraudsters.
Lien imposed on Rs 8,189 crore, action taken on lakhs of complaints
According to the government, in the complaints registered between 2021 and 2025, lien was marked on an amount of more than Rs 8,189 crore, so that it could not be transferred further. During the same period, more than 1.95 lakh FIRs related to financial cyber fraud were also registered. The government says that the sooner the victim files a complaint, the greater are the chances that the amount can be saved by freezing it.
Cyber crimes crossed one lakh for the first time in 2024
According to NCRB’s Crime in India 2024 report, 1,01,928 cases of cyber crime were registered in the country during 2024. In 2023 this number was 86,420. That means there was an increase of about 18 percent in one year. If compared with 2020, the number of cyber crime cases has more than doubled. In 2020, 50,035 cases were registered across the country, while in 2024 this figure will reach above one lakh.
Cyber crime recorded according to category of crime during 2020-2024
| Order | State/Union Territory | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| 1 | Andhra Pradesh | 1,899 | 1,875 | 2,341 | 2,341 | 2,528 |
| 2 | Arunachal Pradesh | 30 | 47 | 14 | 24 | 78 |
| 3 | Assam | 3,530 | 4,846 | 1,733 | 909 | 408 |
| 4 | Bihar | 1,512 | 1,413 | 1,621 | 4,450 | 6,380 |
| 5 | Chhattisgarh | 297 | 352 | 439 | 473 | 660 |
| 6 | Goa | 40 | 36 | 90 | 86 | 77 |
| 7 | Gujarat | 1,283 | 1,536 | 1,417 | 1,995 | 1,592 |
| 8 | Haryana | 656 | 622 | 681 | 751 | 1,815 |
| 9 | Himachal Pradesh | 98 | 70 | 77 | 127 | 148 |
| 10 | Jharkhand | 1,204 | 953 | 967 | 1,079 | 1,423 |
| 11 | Karnataka | 10,741 | 8,136 | 12,556 | 21,889 | 21,993 |
| 12 | Kerala | 426 | 626 | 773 | 3,295 | 2,962 |
| 13 | Madhya Pradesh | 699 | 589 | 826 | 685 | 1,081 |
| 14 | Maharashtra | 5,496 | 5,562 | 8,249 | 8,103 | 9,922 |
| 15 | Manipur | 79 | 67 | 18 | 3 | 5 |
| 16 | Meghalaya | 142 | 107 | 75 | 64 | 97 |
| 17 | Mizoram | 13 | 30 | 1 | 31 | 50 |
| 18 | Nagaland | 8 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 14 |
| 19 | Odisha | 1,931 | 2,037 | 1,983 | 2,348 | 2,501 |
| 20 | Punjab | 378 | 551 | 697 | 511 | 888 |
| 21 | Rajasthan | 1,354 | 1,504 | 1,833 | 2,435 | 1,527 |
| 22 | Sikkim | 0 | 0 | 26 | 12 | 15 |
| 23 | Tamil Nadu | 782 | 1,076 | 2,082 | 4,121 | 5,793 |
| 24 | Telangana | 5,024 | 10,303 | 15,297 | 18,236 | 27,230 |
| 25 | Tripura | 34 | 24 | 30 | 36 | 33 |
| 26 | Uttar Pradesh | 11,097 | 8,829 | 10,117 | 10,794 | 11,073 |
| 27 | Uttarakhand | 243 | 718 | 559 | 494 | 543 |
| 28 | west bengal | 712 | 513 | 401 | 309 | 282 |
| Total (State) | State | 49,708 | 52,430 | 64,907 | 85,603 | 1,01,118 |
| 29 | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | 5 | 8 | 28 | 47 | 28 |
| 30 | Chandigarh | 17 | 15 | 27 | 23 | 116 |
| 31 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu | 3 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 5 |
| 32 | Delhi | 168 | 356 | 685 | 407 | 404 |
| 33 | Jammu and Kashmir | 120 | 154 | 173 | 185 | 114 |
| 34 | Ladakh | 1 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| 35 | Lakshadweep | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 36 | Puducherry | 10 | 0 | 64 | 147 | 142 |
| Total (Union Territory) | union territory | 327 | 544 | 986 | 817 | 810 |
| Total (All India) | Cases registered all over India | 50,035 | 52,974 | 65,893 | 86,420 | 1,01,928 |
Highest number of cases in Telangana, Uttar Pradesh at third place
Talking about states, the highest number of cyber crime cases of 27,230 were registered in Telangana in 2024. After this, 21,993 cases were reported in Karnataka and 11,073 cases were reported in Uttar Pradesh. 9,922 cases were registered in Maharashtra and 6,380 in Bihar. 5,793 cases were reported in Tamil Nadu, 2,528 in Andhra Pradesh, 2,501 in Odisha, 1,815 in Haryana, 1,592 in Gujarat and 1,527 in Rajasthan. A total of 404 cases were recorded in Delhi and 810 in all Union Territories.
Cyber crime cases registered across states and union territories during 2020-2024
| Order | category of crime | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| 1 | Tampering with computer source documents | 338 | 55 | 65 | 71 | 162 |
| 2 | computer related crimes | 21,926 | 19,915 | 23,894 | 35,329 | 36,920 |
| 3 | Cyber terrorism | 26 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 18 |
| 4 | Publication or transmission of obscene or sexual material by electronic means | 6,308 | 6,598 | 6,896 | 7,893 | 6,990 |
| 5 | interception, monitoring or decryption of information | 7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 6 | Unauthorized entry or attempt into a secure computer system | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 7 | Violation of confidentiality and privacy | – | – | – | – | 37 |
| 8 | Publishing electronic signatures for fraud | – | – | – | – | 5 |
| 9 | incite to commit a crime | 1 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | attempt to commit a crime | 18 | 5 | 18 | 11 | 14 |
| 11 | Other sections of the Information Technology Act | 1,017 | 827 | 1,017 | 920 | 718 |
| Total (Offences under IT Act) | IT Act | 29,643 | 27,427 | 31,908 | 44,237 | 44,872 |
| 12 | Incitement to commit suicide online | 10 | 10 | 24 | 30 | 12 |
| 13 | Cyber stalking or bullying of women and children | 872 | 1,176 | 1,471 | 1,305 | 1,240 |
| 14 | cheating sex | – | – | – | – | 99 |
| 15 | organized cyber crime | – | – | – | – | 60 |
| 16 | Publishing misleading information affecting the sovereignty, integrity and security of India | – | – | – | – | 2 |
| 17 | data theft | 98 | 170 | 97 | 113 | 88 |
| 18 | Fraud | 10,395 | 14,007 | 17,470 | 19,466 | 29,758 |
| 19 | Cheating | 4,480 | 6,343 | 10,509 | 16,943 | 19,296 |
| 20 | forgery | 582 | 198 | 224 | 444 | 702 |
| 21 | defamation or morphing | 51 | 31 | 61 | 36 | 28 |
| 22 | fake profile | 149 | 123 | 157 | 225 | 266 |
| 23 | Fake Documents or Counterfeiting | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 24 | cyber blackmail or threats | 303 | 689 | 696 | 689 | 601 |
| 25 | Fake news on social media | 578 | 179 | 230 | 209 | 483 |
| 26 | other crimes | 2,674 | 2,456 | 2,857 | 2,389 | 4,109 |
| Total (Offences under IPC/BNS) | IPC/BNS | 20,201 | 25,384 | 33,798 | 41,849 | 56,747 |
| 27 | online gambling | 63 | 27 | 37 | 87 | 37 |
| 28 | online lottery | 26 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | copyright act | 49 | 32 | 27 | 23 | 30 |
| 30 | Trade Mark Act | 5 | 1 | 14 | 1 | 6 |
| 31 | Other special and local law offenses | 48 | 99 | 103 | 223 | 236 |
| Total (Special and Local Laws) | sll | 191 | 163 | 187 | 334 | 309 |
| Total cyber crime across the country | IT Act + IPC/BNS + SLL | 50,035 | 52,974 | 65,893 | 86,420 | 1,01,928 |
Financial fraud and computer crime are the biggest challenges
According to NCRB data, computer-related crimes were the largest category under the Information Technology Act in 2024, with 36,920 cases registered. Apart from this, 6,990 cases of publishing or broadcasting obscene or sexual material were reported. Among the cyber crimes registered under IPC and BNS, 29,758 cases of fraud and 19,296 cases of cheating were registered. It is clear from this that most of the cases in cyber crime are of financial fraud and computer based crimes.
Government took steps to strengthen investigation and monitoring
The government told in the Lok Sabha that many arrangements have been strengthened to deal with cyber crime under I4C. Mechanisms like coordination platform, cooperation portal, joint cyber coordination team, cyber train portal, cyber commando program and National Digital Investigation Support Center have been developed. Apart from this, financial assistance has also been given to states and union territories for cyber forensic labs, training and capacity building. The government has also launched a new SOP and money restoration module to speed up the process of resolving complaints and returning the defrauded amount.
Also read: One card, dozens of tasks! After the decision of Kolkata HC, know the full power of Aadhaar card
Leave a Reply