The rise in new forms of cybercrimes, such as app-based fraud, use of social media to trap people, is due to poor vigilance and lax law enforcement. Police are yet to have sufficient equipment to trace the criminals involved in such dark web crimes.
A significant portion of these crimes are associated with fake job circulars and various app-based fraudulences. There is a notable increase in new forms of cybercrimes, rising from 1.81 per cent in the 2022 report to 6.91 per cent, according to a recent report of the Cybercrime Awareness Foundation.
In recent years, there has been a notable decrease in the number of complaints lodged. In 2018, approximately 61 per cent of cybercrime victims filed complaints, whereas last year, that figure significantly dropped to 20.83 per cent.
Around 75 per cent of the survey respondents who were victims fell into the age group of 18 to 30. This age group experienced attacks on social media through fake post campaigns or their accounts were hacked.
Cyber harassment and cyberbullying are serious crimes that can have devastating consequences for the victims.
Despite the Digital Security Act (DSA) which was passed in 2018 to "protect" people online, cybercrime in Bangladesh continues to be on the rise. The fact that cybercrime is still on the rise in Bangladesh despite a legal framework is alarming, and more needs to be done to address this issue.
The Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) has filed charge sheet against two for spreading misinformation about the kachchi served at Sultans Dine, according to a local media report. On April 3 in 2023, Kamrul Ahmed, manager of Sultans Dines Gulshan branch, filed a complaint in the CMM Court alleging that Kanak Laila and Abdul Hakim had spread misinformation about his restaurants kachchi.
The victims face blackmail and character assassination as a section of social media users exposes their personal information to cyberspace. Harassment by using photos, videos, and doctored images of victims has increased at an alarming rate.
While fake social media accounts were major concerns earlier, publishing private information about women on the internet has increased worryingly in recent months.
Insufficient information provided by social media platforms, the victims unwillingness to take legal steps, and geographical barriers are the major limitations in cyberspace crimes investigations, a high official at the police HQs said.
A high official of the Cyber Policing Centre at the Criminal Investigation Department told The daily Observer that said that there have been increasing numbers of cyber crimes taking place and that patterns of tech-savvy crimes are changing very fast.
The Cyber Policing Centre receives some 200 complaints daily, many of which are related to harassment in cyberspace, according to police.
Kazi Mustafiz, Founder and President, Cybercrime Awareness Foundation, said one of the major problems in addressing cyberspace crimes is that victims often don get proper help from the police and don have knowledge of cyber security or how to seek legal assistance. He said that their survey found that 80 per cent of victims did not get the desired support from the police after complaining.
Police said the cases related to cybercrimes were mainly filed under four different laws - Pornography Control Act, 2012, the Digital Security Act, 2018, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Act, 2001, and Anti-Terrorism Act 2009.
There are cybercrime units in the Dhaka Metropolitan Polices Detective Branch, CTTC, Criminal Investigation Department, Anti-Terrorism Unit, and Rapid Action Battalion.
Another 17.73 per cent cases were reported to the unit related to mobile banking and financial services related scam. He further added that there has been a dramatic surge in scams where people are deceived under the guise of lucrative offers for online buying and purchases. The CAF report also highlighted a worrying trend in the number of victims filing complaints related to cybercrime offences.
