Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday addressed the issue of “digital arrest” during ‘Mann Ki Baat’ and labelled it as a fraudulent activity and urged people to remain vigilant and safe.
Those involved in the crime are enemies of society, he said, adding that there is “no government agency” that “threatens” people on the phone.
“I’ll reiterate that there is no system like digital arrest in the law, this is just a fraud, deceit, it is a lie, a gang of criminals and those who are doing this are enemies of society,” Modi said during the 115th episode of the programme.
In order to deal with such fraudulent activities, esspecially those going on in the name of digital arrest, “all the investigative agencies are working together with the state governments”.
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“For synchronisation among these agencies, a National Cyber Co-ordination Centre has been set up,” the Prime Minister said.
According to him, thousands of such fraudulent video calling IDs have been blocked by the agencies. Lakhs of SIM cards, mobile phones and bank accounts have also been blocked.
“Agencies are doing their job, but for protection from scams in the name of digital arrest, it is very important that everyone is aware, every citizen is aware. Those who are victims of this kind of cyber fraud should let as many people as possible know about it. You can use #SafeDigitalIndia for awareness,” Modi said.
The Prime Minister even urged schools and colleges to carry out awareness campaigns involving students for combating such cyber scams.
Modus Operandi
During his radio show, the Prime Minister also played an audio clip to help people understand the gravity of the crime and also explained the modus operandi.
He explained, these scamsters will first collect personal information of the victim, and these are mostly detailed ones. Once they have these information run through with the victim, they start building on “an atmosphere of fear”, which includes scaring the person naming government agencies or offices and stating various legal sections. Finally, they build what is today known as ”time pressure”- where psychological pressure is created on the victim so that one gets scared.
Modi asked people not to panic, and rather report such incidents so that action can be taken. “In the first step, I said - ‘Stop’... in the second step I said - ‘Think’, and the third step tells you - ‘Take action’,” he said.
Such incidents can be reported through the national cyber helpline - 1930 – or via cybercrime.gov.in.