The world has now become a global village and the crime pattern has also changed with the changing situation. Cyber crimes are emerging challenges for the police in recent times and Cyber Crime Cell in CID, West Bengal deals with such crimes. Social media are very powerful platform of communication but often these are used with an ulterior motive. The Cyber Crime Cell obtains data from social media organisations like Google, Facebook, Twitter, etc. to track cybercrimes. In present scenario, uses of electronic wallets have increased manifold -which leads to the increase of Cyber Crime cases. To cope up with the situation, we are also keeping close liaison with the electronic wallet companies like mPesa, Paytm, Pay U money, Freecharge, Mobiquik etc. to get instant reversal of misappropriated money in case of ATM fraud/financial cases.
Besides dealing with the cyber crimes and creating awareness on cyber offences and its prevention, Cyber Crime Cell felt the need to monitor social media. This has also introduced a system of continuous surveillance through its Cyber Patrol Cell to meet the growing challenges of cyber crimes being committed through various technical support systems including the social media. Special Superintendent, CID Syed Waquar Raja said, “Cyber Crime Cell has recently cracked cases relating to a fake website of advertisement for Civic Volunteers, threat and attempt of extortion by using Darknet, busting of a fake telephone exchange routing VoIP calls to local mobile phones resulting in loss of huge government revenues.”
West Bengal Police had started Cyber Crime Cell under CID and this unit was set up in 2005. The state police has already modernised its setup with strong software to deal with various types of crimes committed through most modern technical support system. The cell is now acting as the Nodal Unit of the West Bengal Police to meet the Cyber Crime related cases and has recently unearthed a clandestine telephone exchange in Rishra in Hooghly district and arrested two persons in this connection, who are now in jail. The illegal telephone exchange was being used with Mobile Station Modem (MSM) technology and received the international calls through VOIP. Department of Telecommunications of the Union government had extended support to the Cyber Patrol Cell to carry out the crucial job.
This cell also takes control of different cyber crime cases from different police stations of the districts and Commissionerates, especially those cases where inter-state/country ramification is involved and carries out the regular investigation.
The officials of the cell also have the expertise to handle cases relating to hacking, spread of virus, cyber pornography, manipulation of accounts, alteration of data, software piracy, creation of false websites, printing of counterfeit currency, forged visas, theft of intellectual property, email spamming, denial of access, password theft, crimes with cell phones and tablets, cyber stalking, cyber terrorism and the transmission of secret codes. Financial details should not be shared with anybody under any circumstance and unsolicited mails should not be clicked. Besides, good updated antivirus/ softwares should be used for protecting personal data in the system from being hacked, advised Syed Waker Raja, Special Superintendent, CID.
Cyber Crime Cell had also tracked a fake BPO with the help of German Police and apprehended the chairpersons of KAVISH TECHNOSOFTPvt. Ltd., those who were making calls to the foreigners by taking the fake name of Microsoft Support. The employees of the said company impersonated a German nationalist and they used to cheat the people they called. This case is one of the pioneer cases not only in West Bengal but also in India. All the accused persons are in jail till today.
The motto of the cell officers is to serve the humanity at any cost. On 8th November last year, the cell officers recovered one missing laptop and handed over to its owner Dibyadut Roy of Podrah, Andul Road, Howrah based on a single tweet mentioning the twitter handle of West Bengal Police “@wbpolice”.
Meanwhile, new software for storing information of the employees of CID WB has been developed by the software development team of Cyber Crime Cell for installation at RO CID WB. The cell officers believe that there are no escalators in life only steps are there to break the truth.
Cyber Crime Cell is essential to protect people from being victim of cyber crimes and good and up dated anti spyware and antivirus softwares minimize the risks of being affected by cyber attacks.
Arun Chakrabarty
Addl. OC, Cyber Crime Cell
