Lucknow Police proposes implementation of anti-digital arrest measures

The Lucknow Police has proposed an idea for implementing anti-digital arrest measures in view of the rising number of such cases in the state and the country.

In a letter addressed to the UP Director General of Police (DGP), Principal Secretary, Home and other law enforcement agencies, Deputy Commissioner of Police (ACP) Law and Order Lucknow Police Commissionerate, Vineet Singh on October 14 proposed a tie-up with WhatsApp to combat the rising menace of digital arrest scams.

“Our primary solution is to develop and deploy ‘112Bot’, a verified WhatsApp bot operated by UP Police. This bot allows users to silently add it to suspicious conversations with explicit consent, enabling real-time monitoring and intervention without compromising end-to-end encryption,” Singh said. The Hindu.

“This proposal is inspired by Singapore’s ScamShield Bot, a WhatsApp anti-scam tool that detects spoofed government communications and issues alerts,” Mr Singh added. Additional features include one-tap sharing of screenshots, caller numbers and details for quick police response, modeled after Bengaluru Police’s successful WhatsApp emergency response system.

Digital arrest scams involve cybercriminals posing as police officers or Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials through WhatsApp video calls, falsely accusing victims of crimes and forcing them to transfer money under threat of “digital arrest” or legal action. These scams exploit fear, urgency and digital illiteracy, and often target seniors and rural populations. Nationwide, such scams have resulted in losses of over Rs. 1,200 crores by 2024-25, with over 50,000 cases reported through the National Cyber ​​Crime Reporting Portal (cybercrime.gov.in).

“As the Deputy Commissioner of Police (ACP) of the Uttar Pradesh Police, my motivation for presenting this proposal stems from a deep commitment to protecting the citizens of Uttar Pradesh from the devastating impact of digital arrest scams. The proposal bridges the gap between traditional policing and modern cyber threats by leveraging the ubiquitous WhatsApp platform used by over 500 million Indians for real-time intervention, ensuring victims are protected at the point of vulnerability,” said Mr Singh.

The ACS added that such a mechanism will restore public confidence by actively tracking and arresting fraudsters through 112Bot, and will also demonstrate that the UP Police is proactive, tech-savvy and determined, thus countering the narrative that “digital arrests” create institutional weakness.

When asked, did he study any international project of any foreign law enforcement agency before raising this idea in India? Vineet Singh responded that he had gone through the United States’ Massive Blue’s Overwatch System, which deploys artificial intelligence (AI)-powered undercover bots to create lifelike personas on platforms like Telegram, Signal and Discord for gathering information on crimes such as human trafficking and narcotics, and also on Europol’s Online Initiatives for fraud schemes, apart from Singapore’s Anti-Scam Initiative.