How to Report Cyber Fraud in India: 1930 and cybercrime.gov.in, Step by Step

Panic is normal. Ghabrao mat, but move fast, because money in a fraud usually moves quickly from one account to another. Do these things in this order:

1. Stop paying. Do not send any more money, even if the caller says it will "reverse" or "unlock" the first payment.
2. Call 1930. This is the National Cyber Crime Helpline. It is run by the police of your state or union territory.
3. Call your bank or card issuer on the number printed on your card or shown on the bank's official website or app. Ask them to block the card, UPI or net banking if it is at risk.
4. Save the evidence before you do anything else with your phone (see the list below).
5. Complete the complaint online at cybercrime.gov.in with the acknowledgement number you get from 1930.

When you call 1930, a police operator notes your details and the transaction details and raises a ticket on the Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS). This system connects the police with banks, wallets and payment companies, so that a reported amount can be traced and, if it is still in the system, put on hold.

Keep this ready before you call:

• your name, mobile number and address
• the bank or app the money went from
• the date, time and amount of each payment
• the transaction ID or UTR number of each payment
• the UPI ID, account number, phone number or link the money went to

After the call you get an SMS with an acknowledgement number. The official CFCFRMS guidance asks you to then file the formal complaint on cybercrime.gov.in within 24 hours using that number. Don't skip this part.

The National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal is cybercrime.gov.in. Type the address yourself. Do not use a link from a search ad or a message.

1. Choose the option to file a complaint. Financial frauds, hacking, fake profiles and most other online crimes go under the "Report Other Cybercrimes" route, which lets you track your complaint later.
2. Register with your name and a valid Indian mobile number and enter the OTP you receive.
3. Pick the category and sub category that matches what happened, for example online financial fraud, and enter the acknowledgement number from your 1930 call if you have one.
4. Describe what happened in simple words, in time order. Add every transaction and upload screenshots.
5. Submit and note the acknowledgement number. You can check progress with the track option on the portal.

Crimes related to women and children, such as child sexual abuse material, have a separate option on the portal that also allows anonymous reporting. Anonymous reports cannot be tracked.

Police and banks act on details. Before you delete anything or block anyone, save:

• screenshots of the chat, SMS, email, profile or ad that started it
• bank or UPI app screenshots showing each debit, with the UTR or transaction ID
• the scammer's phone numbers, UPI IDs, account numbers, website links and app names
• call logs with dates and times
• any receipt, "certificate" or document they sent you

Sab kuch ek folder mein rakho. Don't edit or crop away the date and time.

Your bank needs its own complaint, separate from the police complaint. Use the bank's official helpline, app or website, and keep the complaint or reference number.

The Reserve Bank of India has rules on how much of an unauthorised electronic banking loss a customer has to bear. Under the RBI's 2017 circular on limiting customer liability, how quickly you tell the bank affects your liability, and in some cases reporting within three working days can mean zero liability. If you shared your OTP or PIN yourself, the rules treat it differently. Check the RBI circular linked below, and ask your bank which rule it is applying to your case.

If you only received a fraud call, SMS or WhatsApp message and did not lose money, you can report the number on Chakshu, a facility on the Department of Telecommunications' Sanchar Saathi portal. If money is lost, use 1930 and cybercrime.gov.in instead.

For non financial cybercrimes such as a hacked account, a fake profile using your photos or online harassment, file on cybercrime.gov.in and also use the reporting tools of the app involved.

After a fraud, many people search online for help and land on "recovery experts", fake helplines or fake lawyers who ask for a fee to get the money back. This is a second scam. The 1930 helpline and cybercrime.gov.in are free. Dial 1930 directly and type cybercrime.gov.in yourself.

Ek baar jo dhokha hua, uske baad doosra mat hone do.