Coimbatore residents lost Rs 87.16 crore to cyber fraudsters in 2025: Police

COIMBATORE: Despite various awareness programmes by the city police and the Tamil Nadu govt on cyber safety, Coimbatore residents lost Rs 87.16 crore to cyber fraudsters in 2025. The city cybercrime police received 9,960 cybercrime complaints in 2025, of which 7,779 were related to online financial scams, according to a release from police. While residents lost Rs 87.16 crore, police recovered only Rs 7.65 crore, a recovery rate of less than 10%. They arrested 60 people in connection with cybercrime cases, and eight were detained under the Goondas Act. In 2024, the city cybercrime police arrested 50 cyber criminals and got nine of them detained under the Goondas Act. Cybercriminals use different methos to defraud people. For example, Sathish Kumar, 45, of Irugur, received a WhatsApp message on July 17 about an alleged traffic violation and a fine of Rs 1,000. The message included an mParivahan.apk file, asking him to download the mParivahan mobile application to view challan details and pay the fine. Believing that it was from a govt department, he downloaded the file. Soon, Rs 1 lakh was debited from his bank account. He lodged a complaint with the city cybercrime police.A cybercrime police officer said bank transactions and other banking-related details were key leads in cybercrime investigations. If banks delay sharing information, investigations slow down and the chances of solving cases reduce. The officer said banks should tighten KYC verification while opening accounts, as lax checks enable the creation of mule accounts that form the backbone of financial cybercrimes.