Hyderabad: India recorded 257 crimes against foreigners in 2024, up from 238 in 2023 and the highest count since international travel resumed after the Covid years.
Telangana registered 15 such cases in 2024, after reporting only five in 2023, according to NCRB 2024 data released on Thursday.
The report recorded offences including theft, rape, murder and trafficking-related crimes against foreign nationals.
Crimes by foreigners stood at 2,792, largely driven by the Foreigners Act, Passport Act and narcotics cases. Interestingly, however, chargesheets were filed in 96.7 per cent of cases involving foreign accused, compared to 68 per cent in cases where foreigners were victims.
Keeping Union Territories aside, where Delhi alone accounted for 64 of the 67 cases registered across all UTs and reported more cases than any individual state, Maharashtra recorded the highest number of crimes against foreigners among states with 41 cases, followed by Karnataka with 32 and Himachal Pradesh with 19. Telangana ranked sixth with 15 cases.
West Bengal reported the highest number of crimes committed by foreigners at 992 cases, followed by Maharashtra with 386 and Delhi with 201. Telangana recorded 44 such cases, placing it ninth among states.
Over the years NCRB figures analysis showed that crimes against foreigners have risen after the collapse in travel during the Covid years. India recorded 517 such cases in 2018 and 409 in 2019 before the numbers crashed to 127 in 2020 and 121 in 2021, however, it rose again to 192 in 2022, climbed to 238 in 2023 and reached 257 in 2024.
Theft formed the single largest category in crimes against foreigners, with 62 cases recorded across India during 2024.
NCRB also counted 20 rape cases, 15 murders, 13 kidnapping and abduction cases, 17 cases involving assault on women and 25 offences under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act.
As for foreign victims, NCRB recorded 317 in all. Nepal accounted for 71 victims and Bangladesh 52, followed by Myanmar with 16 and the US with 15.
Many of these cases involved migrant workers and trafficking victims from neighbouring countries rather than leisure travellers alone. Around 65 foreign trafficking victims were recorded in 2024, and several of those cases involved South Asian nationals in vulnerable labour or migration situations.
Cases involving Western tourists often fell into theft, cheating or sexual assault categories in tourist hubs and metro cities.
When it comes to Telangana, the number had fallen to six in 2022 and five in 2023 before rising again to 15 in 2024, which is a 200 per cent increase in a year.
On the other hand, in crimes committed by foreigners, Foreigners Act and Registration of Foreigners Act violations alone accounted for 1,360 cases, making them the single largest category. Passport Act violations accounted for another 544 cases and NDPS Act offences for 372.
Once immigration and documentation offences are separated from the total, the number of IPC and BNS crimes committed by foreigners becomes much smaller. NCRB recorded 163 IPC and BNS cases in states, compared to 2,544 cases under special and local laws.
Country-wise accused data showed Bangladesh nationals accounted for 3,091 of the 4,794 foreign accused recorded across India, with most cases linked to Foreigners Act and Passport Act violations. Nigeria accounted for 509 accused and appeared more frequently in narcotics, cheating, counterfeiting and economic offences, while Nepal accounted for 476 accused and Myanmar 245, largely concentrated in Foreigners Act and NDPS cases.
Police filed chargesheets in 96.7 per cent of cases involving foreign accused, compared to 68 per cent in cases where foreigners were victims. NCRB data also showed an 86 per cent conviction rate in completed trials involving crimes committed by foreigners, while the conviction rate in completed trials involving crimes against foreigners stood at 56 per cent.
Cybercrime crosses one lakh cases nationally: NCRB
Cybercrime continued its sharp rise through India in 2024, crossing one lakh cases, and Telangana being among the worst-affected states.
Hyderabad figures prominently among the leading metropolitan cities reporting digital fraud and online financial offences, according to the latest Crime in India 2024 report released by the National Crime Records Bureau.
The NCRB data showed that India recorded 1,01,928 cybercrime cases during 2024, marking an increase of nearly 18 per cent from the 86,420 cases registered in 2023.
Offences that fall under Cybercriem are tampering computer source documents, ransomware, dishonestly receiving stolen computer resources, identity theft, cyber terrorism involving publication or transmission of obscene or sexually explicit act in electronic form, interception or moitoring or decryption of information,unauthorized access or attempt to access protected computer system, breach of confidentiality and privacy, publication of electronic signatures for fraudulent purposes, abetment to commit offences, attempt to commit offences, abetment to suicide (online), cyber stalking or bullying of women, sexual intercourse by deceitful means, data theft, and frauds involving online, credit and debit card, ATMs, online banking, OTP frauds, gaming app or website, marketing or investment, fraud call, e-wallet, cheating, forgery, defamation, morphing, fake profile, counterfeiting, cyber blackmailing ot threatening, fake news on social media.
These are the crimes that are also involving communication devices as a medium or target and read with IT Act.
The spike noted the rapid expansion of digital payment systems, online investment platforms and organised international scam networks targeting Indian users through fake trading applications, digital arrest scams, phishing links and impersonation frauds.
Telangana continued to remain one of the country’s major cybercrime hotspots.
NCRB-linked trend data showed that the state has consistently recorded one of the highest cybercrime rates in India over the past few years with 27,230 cases, driven largely by online financial frauds, investment scams and technology-enabled cheating. Hyderabad also continued to feature prominently among metropolitan cities reporting high cybercrime volumes.
According to NCRB metropolitan city statistics, Hyderabad recorded 4,009 cybercrime cases, placing it among the top metros in the country after Bengaluru and Mumbai.
Notably, the investment frauds, fake stock trading applications, part-time job scams and digital arrest frauds emerged as some of the biggest cyber threats in Telangana and in the city as well with cases being registered across the commissionerates.
Recent investigations revealed that several organised fraud networks operating from countries such as Cambodia and other Southeast Asian locations have been targeting victims in Hyderabad and other Telangana districts through fake law enforcement calls and high-return investment schemes.
The NCRB report showed that cyber fraud was no longer limited to tech-savvy users alone, with senior citizens, professionals, businessmen and students increasingly falling victim to organised online scams.
Apart from financial fraud, Telangana police also reported a rise in cyber-enabled crimes involving online betting, fake gaming platforms, child sexual abuse material, identity theft and social media-based cheating.
Shaik Sulthan, cyber crime investigator said, “We all know that we are living in a cyber world. In this world, there will be no chain snatching gangs and no physical attacks but only cyber and online attacks through the internet. The main reason is Cyber Psychology. Scammers are using the same.”
“This means that they are playing with our minds and with the information that we’re giving in the websites, in the shopping malls, and in the social media. Based on that information, the scammers are targeting the people.”
Information is wealth to the scammers. Did you ever think about how your number went to the scammers and all?
The information which we end up providing on the internet is being leaked. We might just knock it off, but simple tasks like giving away our information at restaurants or hotels is enough. “Our data is out for sale like hot cakes. Simple measures like avoiding clicking unknown or unnecessary links. Finally, there is nothing called digital arrest,” he said.
Total frauds: 18922
Credit or debit card: 2,738 cases
ATMs: 855
Online banking fraud: 1781
OTP frauds: 668
Cybercrime rises sharply even as India records dip in overall offences: NCRB
Hyderabad: India recorded a decline in overall cognizable crimes during 2024, but cybercrime, crimes against children and offences against senior citizens witnessed a rise, according to the latest ‘Crime in India 2024’ report released by the National Crime Records Bureau.
The NCRB report showed that the country registered nearly 58.86 lakh cognisable crimes during 2024, compared to 62.41 lakh cases in 2023, marking an overall decline of around 6 per cent.
The national crime rate also dropped from 448.3 to 418.9 cases per lakh population. Despite the overall dip, cybercrime emerged as one of the country’s fastest-growing criminal threats.
According to NCRB data, cybercrime cases increased by nearly 18 per cent in 2024, crossing the one lakh mark nationally. Fraud-related offences formed the largest chunk of cybercrime complaints registered across India, reflecting the rapid rise of investment scams, digital arrest frauds, phishing attacks and financial cheating through online platforms.
Telangana continued to remain among the most cybercrime-affected states. Previous NCRB trend data showed Telangana recording one of the highest cybercrime rates nationally, driven mostl by investment frauds, fake trading applications, impersonation scams and digital arrest cases. Hyderabad, with widespread online financial activity, has consistently figured among major metropolitan centres reporting large-scale cyber frauds.
The report also flagged a rise in crimes against children across the country. NCRB data indicated an increase of nearly 6 per cent in such offences compared to the previous year, with kidnapping and offences under the POCSO Act forming a major share of the registered cases.
Crimes against senior citizens also recorded a sharp increase nationally. More than 32,000 cases were registered in 2024, reflecting a rise of nearly 17 per cent compared to 2023.
Investigators noted that elderly persons were increasingly becoming targets of cyber fraud, cheating, intimidation and financial exploitation.
While traditional violent crimes showed a marginal decline, offences against women continued to remain high across the country.
According to NCRB, over 4.41 lakh cases of crimes against women were registered during 2024, slightly lower than the previous year’s figures. Cruelty by husband or relatives continued to account for the highest share among crimes against women, followed by kidnapping and assault-related offences.
The NCRB report also highlighted India’s continuing road safety crisis. Nearly 1.81 lakh people lost their lives due to rash and negligent driving during 2024.
They pointed out that metropolitan cities such as Hyderabad are increasingly facing challenges linked to digital payments, online investment platforms, fake law enforcement impersonation scams and organised cyber fraud operations targeting senior citizens and educated professionals.