The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4Cs) has successfully thwarted 379 websites hosting illegal loan applications over the past seven months, the Rajya Sabha has been told, as the government steps up actions against such scamming apps.
The action by I4Cs, which works under the home ministry, was taken between October 2023 and May 2024.
Collaborating with various stakeholders, I4Cs also targeted 91 phishing and fake websites, tightening the net around cybercriminals, minister of state for home affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar said on July 24 in response to a written question.
This effort is part of a larger partnership with the National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) to prevent the abuse of '.in' domains.
"Between October 2023 and May 2024, 310 ‘malicious/phishing’ domains have been made non-functional with the help of NIXI. Further, 91 phishing/ fake websites and 379 illegal loan/ scam apps hosting websites have been made non-functional by I4C with the help of stakeholders concerned," he said.
I4Cs also engaged with industry leaders to develop technology-based solutions for the proactive detection of phishing websites.
Rs 2400 crore saved in cyber crime reporting
The minister said I4C has launched the Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System, a platform designed for the immediate reporting of financial frauds and stop siphoning off funds by the fraudsters.
This system has already proven its worth, saving over Rs 2,400 crore in more than 7.6 lakh complaints, he said.
The minister said a new feature 'Report Suspect' has been added on NCRP from January 31 for quick reporting of attempts made to commit cybercrime, using suspicious website URLs.
"5,252 suspect URLs have been reported so far. I4C analyses and issues necessary advisories to concerned stakeholders from time to time. Facility has been added on NCRP for public to check the authenticity of any website under 'Suspect Data' category," he said.
More than 5.8 lakh SIM cards and 1,08,000 IMEIs reported by police have been blocked by the government to date.
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