Cyber crime: A bigger threat than we imagine

Esther Verma
Dimapur, June 19 (EMN): Almost everyone on the planet using the internet is vulnerable to cyber crime – the most common being scams to dupe money off victims. Although Nagaland may not rank among the top spots for cybercrime, as the people get more exposed to technology, the threat also gets more real, lethal and expensive.
With the recent arrest of two scammers from Rajasthan after duping a woman in Dimapur, people are slowly taking more seriously what was once considered a small matter by informing the police and getting the culprits apprehended. But the threats and crimes online is evolving in different ways and the question everybody should be asking themselves is what can be done to avoid falling in the traps of such cyber criminals.
The Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (crime) Dimapur, Yanren Ngullie speaking to Eastern Mirror said that the public should try and concentrate on what is trending in terms of cyber related crimes in the state. “There are many types of fraud cases where people get carried away easily and start investing money,” he said citing example of the recent news report of two impostors in army uniforms sending pictures via WhatsApp to gain the trust of the victim.
Even as the natural base of online banking is somewhat complicated, the very visible increase in mobile banking means online frauds will present themselves to these financial institutions with a number of extremely difficult challenges to overpower.
According to Ngullie, the Dimapur police has taken measures with banks, such as account level checks that look at the type of transactions, logins etc. He said that the key is to look at the analytics and “dig out” suspicious activities. He also added that like making sure all customers have unique login usernames will also help. Even though there is a ‘know your customer’ section in banks it is “impossible to keep track” of all the clients, Ngullie shared saying that many people just transfer accounts from one person to another making it difficult to know if the account holder is still the same.
Without causing inconveniences to the customers, the ADCP and the banking institutions have now decided to set up banners and signboards outside their respective banks. And likewise, customers will be made aware of what is expected of them and the role they will play in preventing online offences.
According to the Nagaland Board of School Education (NBSE) a total of 28519 students appeared their higher secondary level. Many who got through will most definitely opt to venture out to different parts of the country for further education.
This also leaves the students vulnerable to applying at fake colleges and universities and pay huge sums of money online before visiting the institute.
In this matter, the Dimapur police and the banks have decided to execute a programme where resource persons will visit schools and colleges and sensitise the students and parents on choosing legitimate institutes.
A trend that seems to be prevailing in the state is the constant upload of “lost and found” identification cards such drivers licence, Aadhaar cards, Pan cards etc., on social networking platforms. Ngullie warned that by doing so any fraudster can pick up the details on the identification cards and use it for criminal activities. “Even though the intention might be good, many other people are lurking around for an opportunity to cheat others,” the officer said.
According to a report provided by the cyber cell at the police headquarters in Kohima, a total number of 19 cases pertaining to cyber crime have been registered so far, including two from outside the state.
The shocking news of the lynching of two young men in Karbi Anglong has left the nation in shock. And even though present developments seem to be taking a different turn, it cannot be denied that the news spread like ‘wild-fire’ via social media.
An official from the crime branch, Dimapur also informed that an ‘administrator’ of a Facebook page is “actually liable” ethically at least to be responsible for the post a user adds on their page or group. “These posts can cause destruction and defame individual or individuals and can face prosecution if any law suit is slapped against the administrator,” he said. “They (administrator) should have a sense of responsibility and look for authenticity of the post and manage in a certain way,” the official added.
The Director General of Police (DGP) Nagaland, Rupin Sharma also spoke to Eastern Mirror and stressed that awareness is the most important aspect to tackle cyber crime. Claiming that the fight against cyber crime is ‘bigger than any arms battle’, the DGP has encouraged citizens to channel the use of technology in positive ways.