Money top motive for committing cybercrimes in 2012

The year 2012 saw a surge in incidents of cybercrimes related to money.

The year 2012 saw a surge in incidents of cybercrimes related to money.

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According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) statistics, fraud or illegal gains and greed and money were the top motives for committing cybercrimes last year.

Statistics reveal that as many as 653 cases of cybercrimes alleging fraud or illegal gains were registered across the country, while 623 cases were against crimes for money.

These figures assume significance in the light of the recent trend of credit/debit card cloning scam.

“Cyber criminals have moved on to committing monetary crimes by cloning or skimming [cards], as it is easier than hacking into someone’s bank account. With a skimming device fixed into an ATM machine, the accused can target several persons and make money easily,” said Vijay Mukhi, a cyber expert.

He added, “Banks use obsolete technology, which is making it easier for such criminals to operate. Chip-based technology, which is expensive, can help banks put an end to these crimes.”

According to the data, 566 cases have been registered with the cyber police for online sexual harassment and 177 cases for crimes carried out with intention to cause disrepute to the victim.

In all, there were 3,354 cases of cybercrime that were registered in the previous year.

Apart from these, revenge, settling scores, extortion and playing prank were some of the motives for which cybercrimes were committed in the previous year.