Cyber crime awareness must become part of the school syllabus, a top police officer has said, noting that virtual frauds have yet to shake up the common man as thefts and robberies that happen in the streets or people's homes.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of Delhi's Cyber Crime Unit Hemant Tiwari said that a “huge spike” had been noticed in cyber crimes over the last year and a half and it was sure to rise in the years to come.
"Crime against cyber property will see a rise and a time may come when each district will have more cyber police stations than traditional crime police stations," Tiwari said, while talking to a PTI reporter.
With more and more businesses going digital, and money being stored virtually — on phones and computers — thieves too are moving from the physical world to the virtual space.
Meanwhile, the common man has not seemed to have grasped or acknowledged the potential for cyber fraud, Tiwari said, adding that it is for this reason changing the law is the need of the hour.
"There is a lack of awareness about cyber crimes. For example, if you are traveling in a crowded train, you will keep checking your purse because you know that it could be stolen by pick pockets but one does not apply this on cyber space," Tiwari said.
Citing another example, he said most people are unaware that they can lock their Aadhaar cards.
"Even I was not aware about it but when a case came in our unit, I got to know that one can lock it," he said.
Tiwari said a cheater can misuse the Aadhaar card by opening an account and use it for fraudulent means.
"If you have locked your Aadhaar card it cannot be misused. What I want to say is that there is a lack of awareness. Even our Gen Z does not know how to manage their personal data on social media.
This statement from Tiwari comes almost two months after Education Post broke a story about two class 9 students of a top Bengaluru school, with help from pre-university student, creating AI-generated deepfakes of their classmates and posting them online.
"The parents don't tell their teenage children about whom to befriend or not to befriend on social media. When children are going to school they tell them everything including good touch, bad touch and how to be cautious of strangers. Do they ever tell them about cyber hygiene?" Tiwari said.
Awareness has to be created right from the start, and cyber safety should be part of the school syllabus, he stressed.
"What happens is that schools invite cyber experts one or twice a year and they talk about cyber safety. But things will not change like that. Cyber safety awareness should be a part of school syllabus. The way we caution our children about good and bad habits in the offline space, the same should be done for the virtual space," he added.
If a stranger is trying to approach you on social media, do not befriend them, he said. "You should always keep your profile restricted. If you are a model or celebrity, it makes sense for it to be public but if you are a common person, your profile should only be restricted for your friends and family," he said.
(With PTI inputs)
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