He attributed this to various methods of fraud — including ticket booking, digital arrest, intimidation of drug trafficking, KYC update, bait of investment in shares, and OTP shares.

“If we talk about the state as a whole, it is huge. Cybercrime is rising fast… in a few years, it will be the only crime prevalent. White-collar conmen are only looking for virtual platforms. The recent trend shows these crimes are being controlled from Cambodia, Dubai, Sri Lanka, and Hong Kong,” said Bivas Chatterjee, Special PP of cyber cases and a cyber expert, to The Indian Express.

To assist citizens, Bengal Cyber Crime has recently launched a 24/7 helpline (1930) for recording complaints on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, sources said.

The Centre has also taken significant steps to combat cybercrime, including blocking over 6 lakh SIM cards and 1 lakh IMEI numbers linked to fraudulent activities — according to the Union Home Ministry in a recent Parliament session. It was said that Rs 3,431 crore has been recovered from over 9,94,000 cyber fraud complaints across the country, according to the latest NCRB report from 2022.