Cyber Fraud Costs Indians ₹22,845 Crore in 2024: Government

In 2024, Indian citizens lost a total of ₹22,845.73 crore to cyber fraud, the Ministry of Home Affairs informed the Lok Sabha. This is a significant increase from ₹7,465.18 crore reported in 2023, marking a 206% jump in one year.

Combined data from the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) and the Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS) shows that 36.37 lakh cyber fraud complaints were filed in 2024, up from 24.42 lakh in the previous year.

Cybercrime complaints have consistently increased over the past 3 years. In 2022, 10.29 lakh cases were reported, which rose to 15.96 lakh in 2023, and reached 22.68 lakh in 2024, a 42.08% rise over the previous year.

Partial Recovery of Funds

According to CFCFRMS data, more than ₹5,489 crore has been prevented from being siphoned off in over 17.82 lakh complaints filed in 2024. These figures reflect cases where intervention helped stop financial losses.

The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) launched a Suspect Registry on September 10, 2024. So far, over 11 lakh suspect identifiers have been submitted by banks, and 24 lakh mule accounts have been flagged. The registry helped prevent an estimated ₹4,631 crore in fraud.

SIM and IMEI Blockings

The Centre reported the blocking of over 9.42 lakh SIM cards and 2,63,348 IMEIs based on police data. These actions were part of efforts to disrupt networks used in cybercrime activities.

A tool named ‘Pratibimb’ was also introduced to map cybercrime operations geographically. As of now, it has supported over 63,000 investigation requests and led to over 10,000 arrests.

Read more: Cyber Crime Crackdown: ED Raids Gujarat and Maharashtra in ₹100 Crore Case!

Conclusion

Cybercrime-related financial frauds saw a sharp increase in 2024. While some recovery measures have been effective, complaint volumes and monetary losses continue to grow year over year.

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