Gujarat is the first state to use cyberterrorism charges in CCTV leak cases, according to Minister Harsh Sanghvi, who praised the police’s prompt investigation and response.

The Gujarat Police have caught the mastermind of a nationwide CCTV hacking ring, stopping hackers from committing a massive scheme to breach thousands of cameras nationwide. Harsh Sanghvi, the Gujarat State Minister of Home Affairs, announced the arrest in a statement to the Gujarat Assembly.

Gujarat is the first state to add cyberterrorism charges to instances involving CCTV breaches, according to Sanghvi. He commended the state government’s quick and calculated response, which was spearheaded by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.

Minister Harsh Sanghvi intones that to expedite the legal process and guarantee that the case is handled in a fast-track court, the state has designated a special prosecutor.

The treatment of a female patient in a private maternity home in Rajkot is the subject of a widely shared video. The footage was a component of a bigger attack that affected thousands of CCTV cameras in India. While simply arresting the medical workers could have dismissed the problem, Sanghvi noted, the Gujarat Police adopted a proactive stance, conducting a thorough investigation and revealing a significant plot.

Minister Harsh Sanghvi claims that these hackers used Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) from nations including Atlanta, Romania, Georgia, and Japan to hide their identities. The organization has compromised more than 50,000 CCTV cameras in the past eight months using Telegram channels. The feeds from these cameras originated from movie theatres, private homes, schools, colleges, and corporate offices. The accused ran 22 channels that featured obscene menus connected to the compromised video.

After a video of the female patient’s examination went viral on February 17, 2025, Gujarat Police acted right away. The Rajkot incident was quickly the result of investigations after a case was lodged at the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Police Station. To identify the main sources of the illicit activity, police snuck into Telegram groups and pretended to be subscribers.

The hackers were part of a large network that took advantage of WiFi-connected CCTV cameras’ lax security settings, including passwords that were simple to figure out. Public authorities should raise awareness about the significance of protecting digital surveillance systems, Minister Harsh Sanghvi urged. To stop such events, Gujarat Police have also suspended the accused’s bank accounts and sent notifications to social media companies to make sure that unlawful content is taken down.