Cybercrime losses in the national capital have climbed at an unprecedented pace, growing from Rs 6.3 crore in 2015 to Rs 1,271 crore in 2025, marking a 190 fold increase over a decade, according to data shared by the Delhi Police.
Officials said specialised units, including the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations unit and district teams, are intensifying efforts to curb cyber offences by registering more FIRs, freezing suspect bank accounts, and recovering defrauded money.
Data from the Delhi Police Cyber Cell shows that around 1,600 cyber fraud cases were registered in 2025 alone, with losses crossing Rs 1,271 crore. In 2024, the city recorded 1,591 cases with losses of Rs 1,145 crore. While the number of cases remained nearly the same, financial losses rose by about 10 percent year on year.
“We were also surprised at the numbers. Behind the losses are organised gangs which employ tactics such as digital arrests, investment scams and job scams. Different types of OTP and phishing scams, fake bill frauds are also key methods employed by cybercriminals. We have been consistently trying to spread awareness about internet hygiene to protect our users,” a senior police officer said.
In 2015, Delhi reported only 712 cybercrime cases with losses of Rs 6.3 crore. By 2019, losses rose to Rs 26 crore across 795 cases. During the pandemic year 2020, cases doubled to 1,687, with losses touching Rs 35 crore. In 2021, the cheated amount jumped to Rs 91 crore across 1,630 cases, driven mainly by job scams, OTP frauds, and operations linked to Jamtara gangs.
Police said that since 2021, focused action against cybercrime syndicates, mule accounts, gangs, and cryptocurrency rackets has continued. While case numbers have stabilised in recent years, losses have escalated sharply. In 2022, 1,545 cases led to losses of Rs 120 crore. In 2023, cases dropped to 1,347, but losses surged to Rs 400 crore.
A senior IFSO officer told a newspaper, “While the losses have gone up, the recovered amount has also increased significantly. In 2025 alone, we blocked and froze almost 25% of the cheated amount. Earlier, we could only freeze about 10-15% of the losses.”
Delhi Police also launched a special “CyHawk” operation in December, deploying 5,000 personnel for a week. The drive led to 7,000 detentions and tracing of Rs 944 crore linked to mule accounts, helping solve over 4,000 cyber complaints and register 392 new FIRs.
Joint CP IFSO Rajneesh Gupta said, “Before the fraud actually happens, people must report suspicious calls to Sanchar Saathi application or on cybercrime.gov.in.” He added that complaints can now be filed at any police station, online, or via the 1930 helpline, noting that rising losses are largely due to investment and job fraud cases.
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