Delhi: India has faced staggering losses of Rs 120.3 crore due to ‘digital arrest’ scams between January and April 2024, according to recent government data. Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised the alarm on this rising trend in cybercrime during his 115th Mann Ki Baat address on October 27, urging citizens to stay vigilant against these new forms of digital fraud.

Reports from the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP) reveal a sharp increase in cybercrime complaints, with 7.4 lakh cases registered in the first quarter of 2024 alone. This follows a substantial rise from 15.56 lakh complaints in 2023, up from 9.66 lakh in 2022. Data from the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) shows cybercrime losses this year have included Rs 1,420.48 crore in trading scams and Rs 222.58 crore in investment scams, underscoring the magnitude of digital fraud impacting the country.

In a typical ‘digital arrest’ scam, victims receive calls from fraudsters posing as law enforcement, claiming the victim is implicated in crimes involving illegal goods. Under the guise of avoiding legal action, scammers demand payments, often using video calls to create a more convincing threat. During Mann Ki Baat, PM Modi even played an audio clip from a real-life incident, where a scammer posing as a police officer tried to extract Aadhaar details from a victim.