In a coordinated push to curb rising cyber fraud, the Centre has informed the Supreme Court about a multi-agency crackdown on digital arrest scams. The action involves telecom regulators, service providers, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), tech companies, and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), along with enforcement steps taken by WhatsApp, which has banned 9,400 accounts linked to such offences.
The details were submitted by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre under the Ministry of Home Affairs, following Supreme Court directions issued on February 9 to tackle the growing number of digital arrest cases. A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant had taken suo motu cognisance of online frauds and directed agencies including the RBI and Department of Telecommunications to jointly develop a compensation framework.
According to the status report filed through Attorney General R Venkataramani, WhatsApp launched a focused investigation in January 2026 targeting such scams. “In direct response to concerns raised by I4C, MEITY (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology) and DoT, WhatsApp in January 2026 launched a structured, multi-week dedicated investigation specifically focused on digital arrest scams targeting Indian users. This investigation followed a rigorous methodology: identify seed signals map networks enforce against the entire network build scaled automated defences,” the report said. It added that 9,400 accounts have been banned.
To strengthen user safety, WhatsApp is rolling out “enforcement innovations” such as detecting and removing accounts using police or government logos in display pictures. It is also considering alerts for calls from “newly created” or “non-tenured” accounts and plans to automatically hide profile pictures of suspicious unknown callers.
The DoT and telecom service providers have agreed on stricter timelines to block fraudulent SIM cards, aiming to disable suspicious numbers within 2 to 3 hours of detection. The report also noted that the CBI will take over investigations where losses exceed Rs 10 crore. It has already re-registered 3 major cases, including 2 from Gujarat and a Delhi case involving a fraud of Rs 22.92 crore.
A high-level Inter-Departmental Committee held its 3rd meeting on March 12, bringing together telecom operators, financial regulators, and digital platforms. A key proposal is the Biometric Identity Verification System (BIVS) for real-time monitoring of SIM issuance, with implementation targeted by December 2026.
The report added that WhatsApp has committed to safeguards such as SIM-binding mechanisms within 4 to 6. This requires a KYC-verified SIM to remain active in the device, failing which the app will stop functioning. Meanwhile, the RBI has finalised an SOP directing banks to temporarily hold suspicious transactions.
The MHA has urged the court to direct timely implementation of these measures, including faster blocking of fraudulent SIM cards and enforcement of user identification rules.
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