May 31, 2014
Five new cyber police stations to come up in Bengal
With a sharp rise in cyber crime cases, thestate government has decided to set up dedicated cyber police stations in fivepolice commissionerates to crack cyber crime cases. At present, the state`sonly cyber police station functions under the Detective Department branch ofKolkata Police at Lalbazar.
As cyber crime is fast-growing and newtrends are emerging every day, there is an urgent need to set up a separatepolice station to handle cyber crimes exclusively. The move is aimed at helpingpeople from across the state lodge complaints at the respective policecommissionerates instead of travelling to Kolkata for the task.
The cyber police stations will come up atthe five police commissionerates of Howrah, Salt Lake, Barrackpore, Asansol andSiliguri. To begin with, no new posts are being created for the proposed fivecyber police stations. A section of the existing officers at thecommissionerates will be given additional charge of the cyber police stations.
According to the National Crime RecordsBureau 2012, cyber crime cases have increased by 355.8 per cent in Bengal withKolkata ranking fourth among the metropolitan cities. In the past, cyber crimewas committed mainly by individuals or small groups. But now organisations areworking in tandem with criminal minded technologists to commit cyber crimes.
Majority of the cyber crime cases lodgedwith Kolkata Police relate to hacking and damage or loss of computer. But,recently there has been a rise in cases like harassing women on socialnetworking sites and sending objectionable messages or pictures. Complaints ofonline lottery fraud and phishing are also on the rise. There is a need to setup a dedicated police station to exclusively handle complaints related to cybercrimes.
