The Mumbai Port Authority (MbPA) has alerted all ship owners, shipping agents, container operators, importers, exporters, customs brokers and other port users about the increase in cybercrime.
The port authority stated that though states are competent to handle cybercrimes, central government provides assistance to states through various advisories and schemes. It has an effective mechanism to deal with cybercrime cases.
The Port Authority has issued a notification giving detailed ideas on how an affected individual can lodge a complaint if they become a victim of cybercrime. The authority informed that a Portal -- www.cybercrime.gov.in has been launched by the centre for reporting all types of cyber crimes, especially cyber crimes against women and children. The incidents reported in the portal are automatically forwarded online to the State/UT concerned. So far, more than 7. 6 crore people have visited the portal and more than 8.5 lakh cybercrime incidents and 16,573 FIRS have been registered.
Moreover, it informed its port users that the central Ministry of Home Affairs has operationalized the "Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Online Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS)" for quick reporting of online financial frauds and the States/ UTS/ Banks/ Intermediaries have been connected to it. So far, more than Rs. 51 crore has been saved.
A National Toll-Free Helpline Number '1930' has been made operational. R. N Shaikh Traffic Manager Mumbai Port Authority said that it is a general notification issued to create awareness about various mechanisms available to complain against cybercrime and only on instructions of the central ministry the said notification has been issued.
Also, he added that no such cyber attack has been reported by Mumbai Port Authority. It is to be noted that the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority, which is the oldest in the harbour, detected a suspected cyber attack in February this year.
Following this, the port authority carried out the operations manually for a few days reportedly. Meanwhile, Advocate (Dr.) Prashant Mali, a Cyber Crime expert lawyer on cyber crime preventive measure mechanisms claimed that helpline number 1930 is not operational in all states.
"Mumbai being the financial capital and many online frauds happen here yet 1930 is not operational in the state of Maharashtra, I have personally followed up even with the minister and IPS officers yet no respite. I feel the complaints registered on the cyber crime portal often don’t get converted into FIR, there has to be a tab by the ministry of home affairs on this and the ratio of cybercrime complaints received on the portal and converted into FIR should be published state wise in the same portal only," he stressed.
