Uttar Pradesh froze 34% of the money involved in reported cyber frauds in September, higher than the national average of 31%, according to a release issued by the state government media cell on Saturday. The government attributed the figure to technology-driven intervention through the Cyber Fraud Mitigation Centre (CFMC), which helps stop the movement of defrauded money and facilitate its recovery.
Once a complaint is received, the concerned bank is alerted to initiate steps to hold or freeze the transaction. Immediate reporting increases the possibility of putting the money on hold or freezing it before it is transferred through other accounts. It highlighted the involvement of schools and colleges, gram panchayats, self-help groups, youth and sports clubs and local organisations in awareness campaigns.
In several cases, recovery of up to 100% of the defrauded amount was recorded when action was initiated within the prescribed timeframe, it said. The state has also conducted around 84,000 cyber-awareness drives covering phishing, fake websites, data theft, fraudulent approvals and other methods used by cyber criminals. UP has cyber help desks at police stations, while a 1930 call centre and the CFMC are operational in Lucknow. The national 31% figure and UP’s 34% figure in the release refer specifically to the September fund-freezing rate, rather than the overall rate of recovery of cyber fraud losses.
The CFMC uses real-time routing and data sharing to trace and freeze money diverted by cyber fraudsters, according to the release. The government said the emphasis had shifted beyond preventing cybercrime to immediately stopping the movement of defrauded money and facilitating its recovery. The campaigns were held at places including cinema halls and railway stations, besides community and educational platforms, the release said. First hour critical Citing SP (Cyber Crime) Rajesh Yadav, the release said the first hour after a cyber fraud is crucial. The system facilitates immediate coordination with banks after complaints are received, the government said. The release said DG (Cyber Crime) Binod Kumar Singh had also focused on improving the technical capabilities of police personnel through training in emerging areas of cybercrime, including AI-generated deepfakes and mule accounts. The government said combating cyber crime required coordination among police, banks and citizens.
