Cyber News Archives - Page 5 of 13

Govt. Mulls Ban on Influencers Spreading Anti-National Content Post-Pahalgam Attack

The government may ban social media influencers and platforms spreading anti-national content after the Pahalgam attack. The IT Committee has demanded action reports from ministries by May 8 amid rising tensions and UN calls for restraint. Following the terror assault in Pahalgam on April 22, 2025, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology has voiced grave concerns about the role of specific social media platforms and influencers. The committee pointed out that some of these organisations seem to be working against the nation’s interests and may be encouraging violence with their content. The committee has urged the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to act quickly and decisively in response to these findings. The Information Technology Act of 2000 and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules of 2021 specifically seek information about the steps being considered to outlaw such platforms and accounts. Following the terror assault in Pahalgam on April 22, 2025, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology has voiced grave concerns about the role of specific social media platforms and influencers. The committee has given the ministries until May 8, 2025, to provide a thorough report detailing the actions they have taken or plan to take to stop the spread of dangerous content. This action demonstrates the government’s will to prevent incitement and actions that could jeopardise national security from taking place on digital platforms. Section 69A of the IT Act, 2000, gives authorities the authority to ban or remove content that endangers public order, security, sovereignty, or goodwill with other countries. According to the 2021 IT Rules, platforms must designate grievance officers, remove illegal content as soon as possible, and apply due care in content management. Five extremists targeted visitors in the Baisaran Valley with the Pahalgam incident, which has greatly increased tensions in the area and drawn global criticism. Additionally, the attack has led to a rise in anti-Kashmiri and Islamophobic attitudes throughout India, with social media being a key platform for the spread of divisive messages. UN chief asks India, Pakistan to step back from the brink Concerned that India-Pakistan tensions were “at their highest in years,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged “maximum restraint and stepping back from the brink” on May 5, 2025. “Make no mistake: A military solution is no solution,” Guterres stated in a succinct declaration. Guterres offered both governments his “good offices” in the interest of peace. “The United Nations stands ready to support any initiative that promotes de-escalation, diplomacy, and a renewed commitment to peace,” he stated.

Madras University Cyber Forensics Course Marks 20 Years of Innovation

Madras University’s Cyber Forensics course, launched in 2004, has evolved into a postgraduate program producing over 750 graduates with strong industry placements. Recognized as a Centre of Excellence, it offers cutting-edge cybersecurity and digital forensics training. According to the previous department head and course founder-director R. Thilagaraj, the department developed a postgraduate diploma in cyber forensics and information security for police, courts, and business executives in 2004. Because of the positive reaction, it was changed to a postgraduate degree course the following year. Cybersecurity was still in its infancy. He remembers, “Some of the organizations we visited asked why they needed it.” When the first group graduated in 2007, employers were reluctant to hire them. According to S. Latha, the founder of the course and current director of the Centre for Cyber Forensics and Information Security, the first group of alumni is currently working for multinational banks. Up to 750 students have already received their diplomas. With a government grant of ₹1 crore, the centre was elevated as a Centre of Excellence in 2009, and she adds that it became an independent department with the then-Governor-Chancellor’s approval. The cost of tuition is ₹8,500. The course covers the most recent developments in the fields of digital forensics, information security audit, cyber criminology, and information security. Students have benefited from a course that the University of Madras‘ criminology department introduced 20 years ago. According to the previous department head and course founder-director R. Thilagaraj, the department developed a postgraduate diploma in cyber forensics and information security for police, courts, and business executives in 2004. Because of the positive reaction, it was changed to a postgraduate degree course the following year. Cybersecurity was still in its infancy. He remembers, “Some of the organisations we visited asked why they needed it.” When the first group graduated in 2007, employers were reluctant to hire them. According to Latha, the founder and coordinator of the course and current director of the Centre for Cyber Forensics and Information Security, the first group of graduates is currently working for multinational banks. Up to 750 students have already received their diplomas. With a government grant of ₹1 crore, the centre was elevated as a Centre of Excellence in 2009, and she adds that it became an independent department with the then-Governor-Chancellor’s approval. The cost of tuition is ₹8,500. The course covers the most recent developments in the fields of digital forensics, information security audit, cyber criminology, and information security. “Our alumni are placed in Google, Ernst and Young, Deloitte, HCL, Infosys, and even government agencies.” “The course offers 100% placement in corporate houses, software companies, information security auditing firms, banks, telecom industries, and financial institutions,” Ms. Latha explains. A cyber forensics lab has also been established by the department. Students conduct research in important fields of digital forensics and cybersecurity. As part of the RUSA Arumbu project, a student was recently given seed money to verify the legitimacy of AI-generated images, audio, and video. According to Ms. Latha, “a lot of students have worked in identifying ransomware attacks, phishing links, and fake profiles.” In addition to helping with placement, industry professionals who also teach classes created the syllabus. “The government should consider hiring at least a percentage of police with a master’s degree in cyber forensics and information security in the technical wing, as cybercrimes are on the rise and the majority of cases in the future are likely to be related to cybercrime,” she continues. Students who joined the program after graduating with a BCA, such as Vikram T, Farheen Fathima, and Mohamed Thalal, are now guaranteed a respectable compensation package for their campus placement. Every semester, the students work on a project, and the final dissertation they produce is based on actual business issues. According to guest faculty member C. Vishnupriya, having professionals from the industry on the team aids students in comprehending real-world issues. She adds, “They also value it when students solve problems.”

Held Hostage on WhatsApp: Cybercriminals Extort ₹56 Lakh from Retired Teacher

A retired teacher in Ghaziabad was digitally held hostage via WhatsApp for 28 days and extorted of ₹56 lakh by scammers posing as TRAI officials. Police have filed a case under cybercrime laws and frozen the linked bank accounts. Ghaziabad: Archana Khare, a former Vaishali teacher, endured a startling adventure when she was imprisoned online by cybercriminals for 28 days, from April 1 to April 28. Police said that the scammers pretended to be representatives of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), accusing her of misusing her mobile number and threatening to disconnect her. Victim Forced to Transfer ₹56 Lakh in Fear Khare was forced to remain under constant surveillance using WhatsApp video chats every day from 9:30 AM to 5:30 or 6 PM while an inquiry was underway. This was especially true while her husband was gone at work. To clear her name, the thieves allegedly instructed her to go to KG Marg in Delhi and transfer funds from her savings, citing legal procedures. Over the 28 days, she was compelled to move ₹56 lakh to five separate domestic bank accounts. Now that these accounts have been located, the Ghaziabad police have taken steps to freeze them. Police Action under New Criminal Laws Following pertinent provisions of the Information Technology Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), a formal complaint was filed on May 1 at the Ghaziabad cybercrime police station. These consist of: Section 318: Infidelity Section 340(2): Electronic document forgery Section 204: Posing as a public official Extortion under Section 308(2) Crime-related intimidation, Section 351(4) Section 3(5): Shared purpose IT Act provisions for cyber fraud Ambuj Singh Yadav, ACP (Crime), emphasised the significance of public awareness while confirming that the inquiry is still underway.”A new kind of psychological coercion is digital arrest. “Timely reporting saved extra harm to the victim,” he stated. The Ghaziabad case serves as a terrifying reminder of how hackers are now using surveillance, impersonation, and fear as weapons to take advantage of victims. Verifying official communications and reporting suspicious calls to authorities right away are recommendations for citizens.

Fake Emails IDs Defaming CSD and Armed Forces Trigger Cyber Probe in Mumbai

Mumbai Cyber Police have launched a probe after fake email IDS were used to defame CSD officials and the Indian Armed Forces with false corruption claims. A case has been registered under the IT Act and BNS following a complaint from a senior CSD official. Mumbai: A senior official from the Ministry of Defence’s Canteen Stores Department (CSD) has reported an anonymous person to the police for allegedly sending derogatory texts and creating fictitious email IDS against government officials and the Indian Armed Forces. The accused sent many emails under the alias of Sukesh Kumar Hegde between April 8, 2024, and April 16, 2025, according to a complaint submitted by Rahul Janeshwar Bhosale (39), Assistant General Manager (Legal & Vigilance) at CSD, Church Gate. These emails, which were sent from fictitious addresses and included unfounded accusations of Corrupt practice against senior CSD (Canteen Stores Department) personnel, included: corruption_whitepaper2025@pm.mecorruption_whitepaper2024@proton.meexpose_corruption2024@protonmail.comtarget_corruption2024@proton.me The slanderous emails were sent to official CSD accounts such as gm@csdindia.gov.in, jgm1@csdindia.gov.in, jgm2@csdindia.gov.in, and others. The emails reportedly contained confidential departmental information. Additionally, the sender made up an address at Sport View, Palam, New Delhi’s Ulan Batar Rao Tula Ram Marg, which is part of the Ministry of Defence complex. After confirmation, it was discovered that Sukesh Kumar Hegde was not working at the address. Bhosale claimed that by fabricating an identity and presenting false internal data and charges, these emails not only sought to deceive but also to damage the organization. The emails’ header information has been sent over to the cyber police for review. According to Section 66(C) of the IT Act and Section 319(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the South Region Cyber Police Station has responded to the complaint by bringing a case against an anonymous individual for impersonation, defamation, and disseminating false information via a phony email address. The person responsible for the phoney accounts is being tracked down through additional inquiry.

Hyderabad Cybercrime Police File Case Against X User for Offensive Post on CM Revanth Reddy

Hyderabad cybercrime police filed a case against X user “DigtvTelugu” for posting a morphed, offensive image targeting Telangana CM Revanth Reddy. The complaint alleges the post aimed to defame and provoke public hatred. Hyderabad: A social media user has been charged with a crime by the Hyderabad cybercrime police for allegedly posting derogatory and altered content directed against Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy. The problem arose after Kailash Sajjan, state secretary of the social media division of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC), formally complained on April 29, 2025. The lawsuit alleges that an account on X (previously Twitter) with the handle “DigtvTelugu” shared an altered photo of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy in a way that was deemed “objectionable.” Other Congress leaders, like Telangana Food and Supplies Corporation chairman Fahim Qureshi, were also featured in the tweet, which had captions making fun of the politicians. Sajjan claimed that the information was circulated with “malicious intent to defame the CM and the Congress party” and called it “fake, morphed, vulgar, abusive, and derogatory.” Additionally, he asserted that the account holder is a “habitual troublemaker” who seeks to foment anti-government sentiment. The cybercrime police filed a case based on the complaint under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Sections 353(2) (statements conducive to public mischief), 336(4) (forgery to hurt reputation), and 352 deliberate insult intended to cause a disturbance of the peace. Police said they would write to X to get information on the person who posted the material.

Pakistani groups’ cyberattacks on four defence facilities were stopped

Cyberattacks by the Pakistan group “Internet of Khilafah” targeted four Indian defence-related websites but were swiftly thwarted without compromising sensitive networks. The attacks aimed to disrupt services and steal data amid rising tensions post the Pahalgam terror attack. There have been reports of cyberattacks on the websites of four armed forces-related organisations amid the heightened tensions between India and Pakistan. According to government authorities, Pakistan was the source of the cyberattacks. Four related incidents, including cyberattacks on the websites of the Army Public School in Srinagar and Ranikhet that targeted both sites with inflammatory propaganda and a distributed denial of service attack against the Srinagar school, were confirmed by intelligence assessments, according to Army sources. They might create distributed denial of service and vandalize the homepage. However, the web management promptly fixed it, according to a source. According to the source, there was also an attempt to penetrate the Indian Air Force Placement Organisation webpage and a breach of the Army Welfare Housing Organisation database. “No operational or secret networks were impacted at any point; all four locations were quickly isolated, and restorative action was performed. The source claims that efforts by cyber actors with their headquarters located in Pakistan to violate Indian cyber sovereignty have once again failed. The source noted that after mission-critical national networks were determined to be impregnable, these attacks on publicly accessible welfare and educational websites seemed to have been executed. According to intelligence assessments, the attacks were carried out by a group known as the “Internet of Khilafah” or “IOK Hacker,” and its goals were to capture personal information, disrupt online services, and deface websites. The source claimed that these attempts demonstrated the adversary’s capabilities as well as its intent, noting that “India’s layered cyber-security architecture detected the intrusions in real time and quickly traced their origin to Pakistan.” Even as Pakistan continues to redeploy troops and heavy military equipment along the border, firing by small arms along the Line of Control (Loc) has been reported over the past five days, adding to the tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours following the Pahalgam terror attack on 22 April 2025. Furthermore, social media has also seen a surge in tensions and propaganda.

Tackling cyber frauds: Finance Ministry includes I4C under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act for information sharing

The Finance Ministry has empowered I4C to share information under the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act), enhancing coordination with the Enforcement Directorate to combat cyber fraud. This move aims to trace money trails and crack down on rising transnational cyber scams targeting citizens. According to the anti-money laundering law, the government has given the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) permission to communicate with the Enforcement Directorate and receive information to identify money trails and stop cyber scams. The Home Ministry created I4C to serve as the primary hub for reducing cybercrime in the nation. I4C seeks to strengthen collaboration between various law enforcement agencies and stakeholders to increase India’s overall ability to tackle cybercrime. In compliance with Section 66 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the Finance Ministry’s Revenue Department added I4C in a notification dated April 25. As a result, I4C was able to communicate with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and other law enforcement organisations more easily. This information sharing would help identify the masterminds behind the international cyber frauds that target the general public and are becoming more and more common. Phishing websites, false social media identities, and sponsored search engine advertisements are all being used in these types of online scams. These con artists also send an OTP or a webpage link to a victim’s email or phone. The victim’s phone or computer is compromised when they share the OTP or click on the link. The government has requested that individuals use the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal at cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930 in the event of fraud to report such websites.

Rajasthan Education Department Website Hacked by Alleged ‘Pakistan Cyber Force

The Rajasthan Education Department’s website was hacked on April 29, 2025, displaying provocative messages allegedly from the “Pakistan Cyber Force.” Authorities have launched an investigation, while experts call for urgent cybersecurity reforms amid rising attacks on government digital assets. JAIPUR: On 29 April 2025, a cyberattack targeting the Rajasthan Education Department’s official webpage changed the homepage to show some divisive messages posing as the “Pakistan Cyber Force.” In one of the letters, the Pahalgam terror attack was described as an “inside job,” meaning it was orchestrated from within. Another person called the incident a “false flag by the Indian government, designed to incite conflict and religious division.” Additionally, the hackers made derogatory remarks on Himanshi Narwal, the late Lieutenant Vinay Narwal’s widow, whose picture sitting next to her husband’s body was recently widely shared on social media. Shortly after the breach was discovered, the department’s website was removed. In reaction to the cyberattack, Education Minister Madan Dilawar declared, “The Education Department’s IT wing has been activated.” The website has been taken down for the time being, and recovery work is moving quickly. We have also reported the incident to cybersecurity agencies. To determine the group behind the cyber attack and the degree of the damage, an enquiry has been started. “At this time, there is no proof that any private information has been disclosed. To guarantee the security and integrity of our data, a thorough audit of every system is being carried out,” he continued. Experts Demand Immediate Reforms in Cybersecurity The persistent exploitation of government digital assets has sparked concerns from cyber specialists. They estimate that fraudsters have taken over more than 20 lakh pages connected to state departments nationwide. It is estimated that more than 8 lakh of these pages—including some from the Home Department and district-level police units—have been hacked in Rajasthan alone. Experts emphasise the urgent need for strong digital security frameworks and improved monitoring to safeguard government web infrastructure in light of the growing sophistication and frequency of cyberattacks.

Kashmiri Engineering Student in Mumbai Duped of Rs 4.30 Lakh in Online Task Fraud

A 20-year-old Kashmiri engineering student in Mumbai was duped of Rs 4.30 lakh by cybercriminals through a “task fraud” scheme. The student filed a complaint with Matunga Police after being repeatedly asked for money under the guise of security deposits. April 23, Mumbai (PTI) According to city police on Wednesday, a 20-year-old engineering student from Jammu and Kashmir was defrauded of Rs 4.30 lakh by cybercriminals in a “task fraud.” According to an official, the student, who resides in the college dorm in Matunga, received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number introducing herself as “Pallavi Jha.” She gave the victim a “task,” informing him that he could submit online evaluations and make between Rs 2,000 and Rs 8,000 a day. According to the official, he was first paid for finishing the work after accepting the proposal and being connected to a Telegram channel. Later on, however, he was given more responsibility and requested to provide security, so he periodically deposited a total of Rs 4.30 lakhs.

Pahalgam Attack: Cybersecurity Warning Is Issued to Protect Digital Assets Following Hacker Attack in Pakistan

The Pahalgam Attack, a Pakistani hacker group, Team Insane PK, vandalised the Army College of Nursing website, prompting a nationwide cybersecurity alert in India. Authorities warn of potential future attacks targeting critical infrastructure as part of a broader cyberwarfare strategy. The Indian government has issued a cybersecurity alert after a hacking group based in Pakistan targeted the Army College of Nursing following an attempt to compromise the G20 website. All government ministries, departments, and organizations have been directed to strengthen their cyber defenses to prevent such incursions. According to sources, the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) has prepared an internal assessment following the most recent cyberattack, which occurred soon after the Pahalgam terror assault. As part of a larger cyberwarfare plan, the agency believes that further cyberattacks, especially on critical infrastructure, may be on the horizon. All departments are advised by a reviewed alert to improve their cybersecurity procedures immediately. They have been told to put strong security measures in place and adhere to Cyber Hygiene Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) in order to stop unauthorized access and data breaches. The Army College of Nursing’s homepage was vandalised on April 25 by the hacking collective Team Insane PK, which is based in Pakistan. The headline said, “You are hacked!” and also included images of the latest Pahalgam massacre and militant Burhan Wani. “Our religion, customs, and beliefs are miles apart—and that makes us stronger,” the hackers added in a provocative message. The two-nation hypothesis is true; it was not merely a theory. You are Hindu, and we are Muslims. Allah is with us. You will die because of your religion, not because it will save you. Said, we are too strong and superior. Authorities view this as a psychological warfare approach meant to undermine Indian institutions, in addition to being a felony. The origin and network of the hacker organisation are being investigated, and attempts are being made to track them down.

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