Bengaluru lost record Rs 1,242 crore to cybercrimes this year

Bengaluru: Bengalureans have lost a whopping Rs 1,242.7 crore to cybercriminals in just eight months of this year, Rs 214.6 crore more than what was lost in the last three combined, even as police struggle to keep pace with scams that are growing ever profitable. 

According to data, the city reported 12,356 cybercrimes this year (until August 31), or 1,544 cases per month on average. In 2023, the number of cybercrimes stood at 17,633, or 1,470 cases per month on average. 

But 2024 has been best-ever for cybercriminals, with city residents losing twice the amount of money compared with 2023. That's not all. The money stolen by cybercriminals this year is greater than that scooped up by cyberfraudsters in 2021, 2022 and 2023 combined. 

Despite the record money lost, investigations remain choppy. 

Of the 12,356 cases, Bengaluru police have solved only 552 (4.4 per cent). And of the Rs 1,242.7 crore lost to cybercrimes, only Rs 111.8 crore has been recovered (8.9 per cent). 

In many cases, cyber fraudsters were able to siphon off large sums of money from a handful of individuals. 

Investigators say frequent changes and upgrades to the modus operandi have helped cybercriminals stay on top of their game and siphon off large sums from individuals, according to a senior officer in the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). 

"There is an increase in investment frauds involving large transactions. It's a major fraud where people are losing crores of rupees in one go,” the officer said. 

The officer mentioned stock market investors and enthusiasts falling prey to the scam. This indicates that newbie investors are even more vulnerable to investment frauds. 

Other online frauds involving courier services, Aadhaar-enabled payments, jobs and task completion also are growing. 

While cybercrime detection averaged 15 per cent in the last three years, it slid to 4.4 per cent this year. 

This is happening because investigators are focusing on cases with large sums of money involved, the officer added. 

"All these years, investigators went behind those who opened mule bank accounts but the linchpins remained at large. The focus now is to catch the kingpins instead of the foot soldiers," the officer noted. 

A senior officer in the city police criticised the change in focus, saying it meant that the victims who lost less money are very unlikely to get their money back, which is unfair. 

While investigators have been able to freeze 41 per cent of the stolen money, they have recovered only 8.9 per cent of the lost sum. 

Cybercrime investigators also face extreme work pressures and burnouts with 39 per cent of the sanctioned staff strength lying vacant. 

According to the CID officer, when the government constitutes a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe high-profile cases, many cybercrime investigators are deputed there, impacting cybercrimes.