Chennai: A staggering 4,784 youths in Tamil Nadu out of 5,200 people who took part in a survey are active online gamers, with nearly half of them engaging in monetary gaming activities, putting them at risk of cybersecurity threats.
The participants in the survey by NGO Prahar were in the age group of 18-36 years.
Casual games and multiplayer battle formats emerged as the most popular choices among players, many of whom report daily gaming sessions.
"The findings reveal an alarming intersection between gaming addiction and cybersecurity vulnerabilities," said Abhay Raj Mishra, president of Prahar, during a presentation at Don Bosco Arts and Science College in Chennai. "With 49% of respondents participating in monetary gaming, the financial and data security risks are substantial."
The research comes amid escalating cyber threats across India, with authorities thwarting more than 500 million cyber incidents in the first quarter of 2024 alone. The National Cybercrime Reporting Portal has recorded 740,000 complaints this year, with cybercriminals causing losses exceeding 1,750 crore.
Though Tamil Nadu has taken a proactive stance by implementing the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Act 2022, experts warn that the proliferation of unauthorised betting and gaming applications, often endorsed by celebrities, continues to pose significant security challenges.
V Jayaprakash from Madras Digital Cinema Academy emphasised the urgency of addressing these issues, noting that cyber attacks could reach alarming levels of one trillion by 2033 and 17 trillion by 2047 if left unchecked.
As digital gaming platforms continue to expand their influence across the state, authorities and cybersecurity experts are calling for increased awareness and stricter regulations to protect vulnerable users from potential cyber threats. The NGO has suggested a few interventions to the state govt. One is whitelisting of apps to help people differentiate between legal and illegal apps. "Besides, we need to strengthen the cyber security wing of police by providing enhanced training to tackle this menace. Celebrity endorsements for gaming apps should be regulated," he said.