Telangana, Hyderabad City: The City Police Commissioner Mr. C.V. Anand IPS, DG & CP – Hyderabad underscored the critical need for a unified and well-coordinated approach among all stakeholders, including law enforcement agencies, financial institutions, and regulatory bodies, to effectively address the escalating threat of cyber fraud.
In a high level meeting held between senior bank officials, RBI officers and Law enforcement agencies to address the rising instances of digital fraud, the City Police Commissioner delivered a detailed presentation highlighting the critical challenges in investigating cybercrimes. He flagged the delays in obtaining crucial information from banks, including refunds and account statements, which adversely impact both the pace of investigations and the victims involved.
CP Anand brought to the fore lapses in compliance protocols, such as the improper opening of current accounts and the use of mule accounts by fraudsters. He elaborated on the sophisticated modus operandi of cybercriminals, including the use of layering through multiple accounts, shell accounts, and transactions carried out via VPNs, which complicate the tracking process. “Please don’t misconstrue this as a complaint. Let us team up for the benefit of the people.” he appealed and informed the meeting about rewarding bank officials who responded swiftly and prevented funds transfer to fraudsters accounts.
He presented a set of recommendations prepared by Cybercrimes unit of HCP to address these challenges, including geo-based account verification, real-time monitoring, and multi-factor authentication protocols etc.,
Mr. Kamal Prasad Patnaik, RBI Regional Director spoke about the challenges, and underscored the importance of accelerated response; awareness campaigns, and emphasized on standardising communication channels. Avoiding duplicate freeze requests, periodical review and Single point of contact for banks and an alternate officer for emergencies, creation of escalation matrix by the banks were some of the key points discussed by the officials. Smt.Ruchi Asthana, RBI General Manager shared a presentation on standard operating procedure issued by the Central Economic Intelligence agency. The legal advisors of leading banks, other RBI officials shared key insights and suggestions.
The meeting witnessed constructive deliberations, with officials from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) commending the proactive measures undertaken by the city police. To ensure a more efficient response to these modern era financial frauds , it was decided that the police will share monthly pendency data regarding court refund orders, delays in providing account statements, or KYC-related issues with banks. Banks, in turn, will prioritize addressing these matters on an urgent basis.
A key outcome of the meeting was the decision to hold monthly coordination workshops between banks and LEAs. These workshops will focus on process improvements, knowledge sharing on emerging fraud patterns, and enhanced coordination to preempt fraud attempts.
Additionally, a committee has been formed to draft a comprehensive Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for handling critical issues such as court refund orders and multiple account holds. The committee comprises Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cyber Crimes) Kavitha, Mr. Biksham Reddy, and legal representatives from leading banks, including HDFC, SBI, and Axis Bank. This committee will work towards framing uniform guidelines, standardizing amount release mechanisms, and developing a standardized format for sharing information between LEAs and banks to streamline the overall response mechanism.
The City Police Commissioner reiterated the importance of concerted efforts and seamless coordination between all stakeholders to tackle the evolving threat of cyber frauds. He expressed confidence that the measures and initiatives outlined during the meeting would significantly enhance the efficacy of investigations and relief to the victims.
Our Citizen Reporter – Telangana
Mr. Bharath Reddy
