Hyderabad: In a major crackdown on cybercrime, the Cyber Crime Police here conducted extensive inter-state operations in March, leading to the arrest of 20 accused persons across five states and the recovery of over Rs 1.59 crore, which was refunded to victims.
According to the Additional Commissioner of Police (Crimes & SIT) M Srinivasulu, the police registered 54 FIRs based on complaints received through the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP) during the month.
15 arrested in Telangana, one in AP
As part of special operations, Hyderabad cybercrime police tracked and arrested 20 individuals involved in 13 cybercrime cases from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Kerala and Rajasthan.
Telangana – 15
Andhra Pradesh – 1
Goa – 1
Kerala – 2
Rajasthan – 1
Seized assets
Cash: Rs 6.5 lakh
Mobile phones: 14
Laptops: 4
Cheque books: 9
Shell company stamps: 2
Zonal cyber cells got 3,081 petitions
Zonal cyber cells received 3,081 NCRP petitions and registered 276 FIRs. In four cases, four accused were arrested and Rs 95.99 lakh was refunded to the victims.
Nature of cybercrime cases
Among the 20 accused arrested, the cases included:
Investment fraud – 3
Trading fraud – 1
Gaming fraud – 8
Job fraud – 2
Social media fraud – 1
Matrimonial fraud – 3
Credit card fraud – 1
Impersonation fraud – 1
Rs 4.40 crore lost, Rs 1.59 crore recovered
In March, victims in 23 cybercrime cases collectively lost Rs 4.40 crore. Through coordinated efforts with banks and agencies, the police successfully refunded Rs 1.59 crore.
Key recoveries include:
100% refund cases:
– Debit card fraud – Rs 44.63 lakh
– Customer care fraud – Rs 2.52 lakh
Investment and task frauds:
– 13 cases: Rs 1.28 crore lost; Rs 51.71 lakh refunded
– Trading fraud (3 cases): Rs 72.99 lakh lost; Rs 9.70 lakh recovered
OTP and digital arrest scams:
– OTP fraud (5 cases): Rs 53.99 lakh lost; Rs 38.34 lakh refunded
– Digital arrest scams (2 cases): Rs 1.23 crore lost; Rs 4.08 lakh recovered
Other frauds:
APK fraud (3 cases): Rs 6.11 lakh lost; Rs 5.74 lakh refunded
Business fraud (2 cases): Rs 4.92 lakh lost; Rs 1.73 lakh recovered
Part-time job fraud (1 case): Rs 2.43 lakh lost; Rs 1.20 lakh refunded
129 social media profiles found promoting gambling
Through continuous cyber patrolling, police identified 129 social media profiles promoting illegal online gaming and betting apps on Facebook and Instagram.
These accounts were running 494 paid advertisements targeting Indian users, especially youth. All identified profiles were reported and taken down.
C-MITRA initiative
Under the C-MITRA initiative, police made 1,730 assistance calls to guide victims and registered 262 Zero FIRs based on complaints.
Cyber Simba awareness drive
As part of the ‘Jagrut Hyderabad – Surakshit Hyderabad’ campaign, around 500 Cyber Simba volunteers participated across the city. Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar distributed kits and encouraged volunteers to spread awareness via WhatsApp groups and door-to-door campaigns.
Since its launch in November 2025:
– 1,717 volunteers registered
– 5,118 awareness drives conducted
– Nearly 2 lakh people reached
The initiative helped reduce daily cyber complaints from 80 to 60.
Major case highlight: Rs 26 crore Gaming Fraud
In a major gaming fraud case, a woman was lured through an Instagram advertisement into investing via a fraudulent website. Initially, she was shown profits. She later invested heavily and lost a staggering Rs 26.07 crore.
Four accused were arrested in the case, and police seized laptops, mobile phones, cheque books, shell company stamps and cash.
Public advisory
Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police issued the following precautions:
– Beware of fake profiles impersonating officials seeking money
– Avoid investment groups promising high returns on Telegram/WhatsApp
– Do not download APK files from unknown links
– Secure WhatsApp with privacy settings and two-step verification
– Be cautious of matrimonial and honey-trap scams
– Ignore ‘digital arrest’ threats from fake officials
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