The latest data compiled by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) showed that 2,743 cyber crime cases were registered in Bengaluru in 2017, the highest among cities across the country.
Bengaluru accounted for nearly 38% of the cyber crime cases registered in the country. The number of cases registered in the city was more than twice the number of cases registered in Mumbai (1362), which is the second highest in the country. Jaipur (685) registered the third highest number of cases of cyber-crime.
A total of 2,657 cases or nearly 97% of the cases registered in Bengaluru, were computer-related offences. This included 2,178 cases of identity theft, 22 cases of violation of privacy, and 78 cases of publishing or transmitting material containing sexually explicit acts.
Karnataka registered the third highest number of cyber-crime cases (3,174) in the country behind Uttar Pradesh (4,971) and Maharashtra (3,604). More than 86% of the cases in Karnataka were registered in Bengaluru alone.
Another alarming statistic is the low rate of solving cyber-crime cases. In 2017, there were 3,703 cyber-crime cases for investigation in Bengaluru. This included the 2,743 cases registered in 2017 and 940 pending cases from previous years. At the end of the year, 2,262 cases were still pending investigation. This accounts for more than 61% of the cases which were pending at the start of the same year.
TNM had earlier reported that out of 8,495 cyber-crime cases registered in Karnataka since 2014, 7,516 were from Bengaluru. In these cases, there were only 36 convictions with five of them being cases registered in Bengaluru. There were four convictions in 2014 and one in 2018.
Cyber-crime police officials cited cost of investigating cyber crime cases and lack of geographical boundaries as reasons for the lack of convictions in Bengaluru. Police officials also cited a lack of knowledge about technology and cyber-crimes as one of the reasons.