Govt blocks 3,718 misleading apps
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has stepped up its efforts against cybercrime, blocking 3,718 mobile apps, including fake loan apps, up to June 30, 2026. The ministry has also recovered or prevented losses of over Rs 11,158 crore in financial frauds, according to Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar, who shared this information with the Lok Sabha in a written reply on Monday.
The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), part of the ministry, leads efforts to fight all types of cybercrime. One important tool is the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) at cybercrime.gov.in, which lets people report incidents online, especially those involving women and children. The Sahyog Portal also helps by making it faster to send notices to IT companies under Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. This system helps quickly remove or block access to illegal content, data, or links. The 3,718 apps were blocked under Section 69A and Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act, showing how many misleading and fake apps are in the digital marketplace. One major achievement is the Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS), started in 2021 by I4C. This system lets people report financial fraud right away so authorities can act before money is lost.
By June 30, 2026, the system had handled over 32.80 lakh complaints and helped save more than Rs 11,158 crore for victims. The Suspect Registry, which tracks cybercriminal identifiers, was launched on September 10, 2024, with help from banks and financial institutions. By June 2026, banks had shared over 30.48 lakh suspect data points.
As a result, 32.08 lakh mule accounts were flagged, stopping transactions worth Rs 25,698 crore. At the same time, the Government blocked more than 15.75 lakh SIM cards and 5.77 lakh IMEI numbers reported by police. To make handling complaints faster and more consistent, the ministry has created a Standard Operating Procedure for the NCRP-CFCFRMS system. This SOP sets clear steps for processing complaints, working with banks, resolving grievances, removing lien markings, and returning stolen funds. Two important modules, the Money Restoration Module for quickly returning money to victims and the Grievance Redressal Module for dealing with frozen accounts and lien markings, started working in April 2026. Besides enforcement, the Government has also launched a large public awareness campaign.
The campaign includes a nationwide caller-tune, SMS alerts, ads on TV and radio, cinema hall promotions, school programs, digital displays at railway stations and airports, celebrity endorsements, and messages linked to the IPL. The I4C’s social media handles on X (@CyberDost), Facebook (CyberDostI4C), Instagram (CyberDostI4C) and Telegram (cyberdosti4c)—regu), Facebook (CyberDostI4C), Instagram (CyberDostI4C), and Telegram (cyberdosti4c) regularly share advisories.
A handbook for adolescents and students has been published. Cyber Safety and Security Awareness weeks are held with state and Union Territory Governments, and MyGov helps with publicity across different platforms. Officials say that using technology, working together, protecting the financial system, and raising public awareness are all making a real difference.
Recovery of thousands of crores demonstrates that proactive intervention can significantly disrupt cybercriminal networks. As digital transactions continue to expand, the ministry maintains that sustained vigilance, rapid response mechanisms and public cooperation remain essential.
The figures presented in Parliament underscore both the magnitude of the challenge and the tangible progress achieved through I4C’s coordinated framework.
Citizens are urged to report any suspicious activity immediately through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal so that the system can act before irreversible losses occur.
