SC orders CBI probe with "free-hands" approach into nationwide digital arrest cases

New Delhi [India], December 1 (ANI): The Supreme Court on Monday issued strong directions in the suo moto (self-initiated) case with regard to 'digital-arrests' committed by cyber criminals and fraudsters across the country.
A bench led by CJI Surya Kant directed that the CBI shall act with free hands to initiate the first investigation in the cases of digital arrest scams. It clarified that the CBI is authorised to freeze accounts used for committing cybercrimes even in the absence of an FIR.
"The digital arrests scam requires the immediate attention of the premier investigating agency of the country. Therefore, we proceed with the clear direction that CBI shall firstly investigate the cases on the digital arrests scam," the apex court said.
In order to ensure a strong CBI probe into the issue, the apex court also issued the following directions.
It directed that the CBI shall have complete independence to investigate the involvement of bankers operating under the framework where bank accounts have been opened and used for digital arrest scams.
The Court has also impleaded (made a party to the case) the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and sought its response to assist the Court by indicating when AI/ML-based systems can be deployed to identify suspicious accounts and promptly freeze proceeds of crime.
Authorities (intermediaries) under the Information Technology Rules, 2021, shall extend full cooperation to the CBI, the apex court added.
The States which are yet to grant general consent to the CBI are directed to do so for investigations under the IT Act within their jurisdiction, in order to have a comprehensive, pan-India action by the agency.
The Court also added that, given the scale of these offences and their cross-border nature, the CBI may seek assistance from Interpol whenever necessary.
Further, the Court noted that the material placed before it reveals serious lapses or negligence by telecom service providers in issuing SIM cards, including multiple SIMs in the same name. Thus, it directed the Department of Telecommunications to submit a proposal to this Court outlining measures to prevent misuse of SIM cards.
Moreover, the Court directed all States to expeditiously establish State Cybercrime Centres.
The Court also noted that these suo motu proceedings currently pertain to digital-arrest scams. Thus, decisions on supervising other categories of cybercrime will be taken at a later stage, it added.
"The learned Solicitor General of India shall ensure that the Ministry of Home Affairs, Department of Telecommunications, and Ministry of Finance are adequately represented and that their views are placed before this Court for effective oversight," the Court noted.
The Court also directed the Authorities under the IT Rules to preserve mobile phone data of all devices reported in cybercrime cases or named in FIRs across different States. (ANI)