68 Telangana cops to make cyber world safer for women, kids

HYDERABAD: At a time when cybercrime in Telangana is on a multifold rise, the women and safety wing of the state police are going all out to curb the trend. 

With an aim to make every district in the state equipped with a cyber cell, 68 police personnel have started undergoing advanced training in tackling cybercrime from Friday. 

Claiming that by 2021-end, all 33 districts will have a cyber cell, DIG (Telangana Women Safety) Sumathi informed The New Indian Express, “Since March, when lockdown was imposed, we observed a rapid spike in cybercrimes against women and children. In the last year, we saw a 70 per cent spurt in cases. 
To find a solution to this challenge, we conducted a survey  which highlighted the need for two things — one, awareness about cybercrime among women and children, and two, capacity building of the police department to handle such cases in time.”

For awareness, a month-long online campaign, ‘CybHer’ which is aimed at a safer cyber world for women and children, was launched in July, she said. 

For capacity building, the department has decided to train at two officers in every district. 

“In cases wherein morphed photos of women are uploaded on social media, most victims are reluctant to file an FIR. The specially trained officials can handle such situations using AI tools,” she said. The programme is organised in collaboration with the Centre for Research on Cyber Intelligence.