Mumbai Police to introduce phone helpline to curb cybercrimes

Given that cybercrimes have increased significantly in the city over the past couple of years, Mumbai Police has decided to launch a helpline for its citizens so that they can report financial frauds and other cybercrimes immediately after they take place.

The existing setup allows an individual to file a complaint by walking over to the nearest police station or share their grievances with the official Mumbai Police Twitter handle. However, the introduction of a helpline will go a long way in solving more crimes by taking lesser time. 

As per data offered by Mumbai Police, in the first of 2019, only 75 of the 498 cybercrime cases were solved, speaking volumes about the inefficiency of the current setup. While this new plan will be a major improvement, officials believe it’s still some distance away given that it requires proper training as well as the setting up of necessary infrastructure. 

A new report by the ACB (anti-corruption bureau) has revealed the sorry state of Maharashtra Police, claiming that the branch had the most corruption complaints among 44 state government departments assessed by the ACB for the year 2019. The department has topped the list for the first time since 2013. 

As per cyber experts, a dedicated helpline will go a long way in solving crimes quickly. Or in the case of a debit or credit card misuse, the police can quickly contact the bank and make sure the money is refunded and/or the card is blocked.