Karnataka orders formation of cyber command unit within state police to tackle rising cybercrimes
The Karnataka government has established a Cyber Command unit within the state police to address the surge in cybercrimes, with 52,000 cases reported last year. The unit will operate under the Home Department and be led by the DGP for Cybercrime and Narcotics, using existing posts to minimize costs. On April 9, 2025, the Karnataka government issued an edict establishing a Cyber Command section within the state police to solely address the increasing number of cybercrime charges. According to the government directive, the Cyber Command unit will report directly to the state home department rather than the state police chief. It will be supervised by the Director General of Police for Cybercrime and Narcotics inside the Criminal Investigation Department. Traditional crimes like robbery, dacoity, and other types of physical theft have now been surpassed by cybercrimes. According to government sources, Karnataka recorded 52,000 cybercrimes last year, the most of any South Indian state. 43 CEN (cyber, economics, and narcotics) police stations, cyber-crime police stations operating under DGP, and CID under the Cyber Crimes Prevention Unit will be renamed by the government as part of the project. Up to 193 current police positions of all levels have been reorganized to operate under the cyber command. The Karnataka State Excise Act, 1965 (Karnataka Act, 21 of 1966), the Lotteries Act, 1964, the Karnataka State Lottery Rules, 1999, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967 (Central Act, 37 of 1967), the Karnataka Control of Organized Crime Act, 2000 (Karnataka Act, 1 of 2002), and the Information Technology Act, 2000 all grant the CEN police stations the authority to file cases. Additionally, they are authorized to register offences under sections 420, 409, 467, 468, 471, 489 (A-E) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) where the total amount involved exceeds Rs 50 lakh and to register money deposit frauds. To effectively prevent cybercrimes in Karnataka, the order states, “The Director General and Inspector General of Police have reviewed this proposal and considered it appropriate to establish a new Cyber Command Unit in the state without creating any new posts, using the existing posts, and without incurring much financial burden.” The Deputy Chief Secretary to the Government, Department of Home Affairs, will oversee the Cyber Command, which will be established by separating the positions of the DGP, Narcotics, and Cyber Crime in the CID Division. Pronab Mohanty, an IPS officer from the 1994 batch, is currently the DGP Narcotics and Cyber Crime. The government order states that the DG Cyber Command will oversee the Karnataka Cyber Security Policy and serve as the state’s Chief Information Security Officer. Additionally, a Multi Departmental Coordinating Committee (MDCC), established in March 2024 to handle disinformation cases, will report to the DG Cyber Command.