Goemkarponn desk
PANAJI: Frequently changing your display picture (DP) or profile picture on social media sites makes you an attractive target for cybercriminals who are on the lookout for victims
Goa superintendent of police (SP) (legal) Sunita Sawant on Thursday briefed the media concerning a rapid increase in cybercrime cases against women and said that the cases have more than doubled over the last year, largely due to women making themselves vulnerable on social media and falling prey to blackmailers and other criminals.
Frequently changing your display picture (DP) or profile picture on social media sites makes you an attractive target for cybercriminals who are on the lookout for victims, SP Sawant said.
“When we are on the Internet, Facebook, or Instagram, we need to upload fewer pictures and not expose ourselves. We should not change our DP repeatedly. The fraudsters target these kinds of accounts first,” she said.
“By uploading one reel, you are exposing yourself to 1000-2000 people and can fall prey to these kinds of… personal photographs, family photographs should be uploaded as little as possible,” she said.
Goa police registered 90 cases of cyber crimes against women in 2022 and 52 complaints so far this year, which is more than double the 38 cases registered in 2021, the SP informed.
“Four days ago, we received a complaint by a girl that a Face-it Instagram account was opened by someone else which had reels and photographs of her. Later, the cybercriminals began defaming and harassing her.”
She said a case in this regard has been and an investigation is being held. The SP added that even the children of policemen have not been spared by these online criminals.
The state police have been successful in cracking cyber criminals only if the culprit is local but have admitted that if the perpetrators reside outside the country, they are difficult to track down.
Comment