Patna, Dec 31 (NationPress) Bihar, long recognized as the state with the lowest per capita income, is increasingly falling prey to organized cybercrime, thrusting numerous economically vulnerable families into dire financial situations.

Various districts in the state are experiencing a swift rise in cyber fraud operations, as criminals continuously devise new and advanced techniques to defraud unsuspecting individuals.

Estimates indicate that cybercriminals illegally extract over Rs 500 crore each year from Bihar, with some evaluations suggesting the loss could be as high as Rs 800 crore to Rs 1,000 crore annually.

This significant financial bleed is particularly harmful for a state where many residents subsist on meager incomes.

Bihar is fast becoming a new epicenter of cybercrime.

Previously, such activities were mostly linked to Jamtara in Jharkhand, but now the cyber fraud networks have expanded to districts like Nalanda and Nawada, which have turned into key hubs for organized cyber fraud.

From these areas, criminal organizations operate call centers, manage fraudulent digital platforms, and coordinate scams nationwide.

The rise in cybercrime incidents in Bihar over recent years has been alarming. Official records show that 1,606 cybercrime cases were logged in 2022, and this number surged to 4,450 cases in 2023, marking a staggering 2.7-fold increase.

In 2024, the number climbed to 5,712 cases, with 5,572 cases already recorded by November 2025. This represents a fourfold spike in cybercrime cases compared to 2022, underlining the rapid proliferation of cyber fraud networks in the state.

Cybercriminals are perpetually upgrading their tactics. In many instances, they acquire banking information through phishing, while in other cases, they impersonate officials from agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation or Enforcement Directorate, intimidating victims with threats of digital arrests.

Employing fear and intimidation, these criminals coerce victims into transferring substantial amounts of money. Such digital arrest scams alone have resulted in losses amounting to crores of rupees in Bihar.

As per police sources, the intelligence unit is vigilantly tracking dubious mobile numbers, websites, URLs, and digital financial transactions to trace the origins of these cybercriminals. The Economic Offence Unit (EOU), a key agency of the Bihar Police, is focused on monitoring financial fraud and has proactively worked to mitigate these scams.

With the support of telecom service providers, the EOU has successfully blocked approximately 9,300 mobile numbers and around 4,000 IMEI numbers associated with cyber fraud. This decisive action has significantly disrupted the communication channels of cybercriminals and, in numerous instances, thwarted fraudulent activities before they could escalate.

The unit's proactive stance has also unveiled serious cybercrime operations, including SIM box fraud, where international calls were illicitly converted into local calls to facilitate cyber fraud.

Furthermore, organized groups involved in creating fake websites to extract personal and banking information from unsuspecting citizens have also been dismantled. These successes demonstrate that the EOU is not only responding to complaints but also actively preventing cybercrime through advanced detection.

A critical technological support for this initiative is the 'Pratibimb' portal, a GIS-based software module developed in partnership with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Union Home Ministry. The Pratibimb platform aids law enforcement in identifying the location, identity, and networks of cybercriminals based on complaints filed on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP).

Utilizing this technological backing and detailed mobile data analysis, the EOU executed a special statewide operation named 'Cyber Prahar', resulting in the arrest of 171 cybercriminals.

Additionally, the EOU headquarters has referred over 5,600 cybercrime cases to district cyber police stations this year, leading to the apprehension of more than 1,000 suspects. These statistics illustrate that Bihar's approach to combating cybercrime is becoming more structured, coordinated, and results-driven.

Timely interventions by law enforcement have led to the freezing of Rs 106.30 crore in suspicious bank accounts. However, owing to procedural and technical limitations, only Rs 7.36 crore has been refunded to victims thus far.

Looking ahead, these measures are poised not only to deter cybercriminals but also to significantly bolster public trust in digital transactions and online systems.