New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conduct a unified, countrywide probe into rising digital arrest scam cases, while questioning the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on why it is not using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning to detect and freeze accounts used by cybercriminals.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi asked several states—including West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Telangana—to grant consent to the CBI for investigating these cases within their jurisdictions.
Digital arrests have emerged as a dangerous form of cyber fraud, where criminals impersonate police, court officials or government personnel through audio and video calls. Victims, often senior citizens, are intimidated, held virtually “hostage,” and coerced into transferring money.
The court issued notice to the RBI, seeking an explanation for the absence of AI-based tools to curb cyber fraud. It also directed IT intermediaries to fully cooperate with the CBI by providing necessary data and assistance during investigations.
Expressing concern that cybercriminals often operate from abroad, the Bench instructed the CBI to take support from Interpol to trace individuals working from offshore tax havens. It further asked the Department of Telecom to prevent telecom companies from issuing multiple SIM cards to a single user, a practice frequently exploited in cybercrimes.
For improved coordination, all States and Union Territories were ordered to establish regional and state-level cybercrime coordination centres. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta was asked to present the views of key Union ministries, including Home, Telecom, Finance, and IT, to help shape the court’s broader strategy on combating digital fraud.
The Supreme Court also clarified that state police forces, UTs, and the CBI have complete authority to freeze fraudulent bank accounts. It specifically instructed the CBI to investigate bank officials suspected of assisting fraudsters by enabling mule accounts—bank accounts used to receive and transfer illicit money, making the funds harder to trace.
The directions came during the hearing of a suo motu case triggered by the complaint of an elderly couple from Haryana. The court noted that over ₹3,000 crore has allegedly been siphoned off in digital arrest scams, underscoring the urgent need for decisive intervention.
