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Maharashtra Cops Strike Against Cybercrime, Register 803 Proactive FIRs
Maharashtra Cyber identified 2,717 Layer-1 money mule accounts across 57 banks, linked to disputed transactions worth approximately ₹12.57 crore
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The Maharashtra Police have taken the fight against cybercrime directly to the infrastructure that allegedly powers online financial fraud, registering 803 proactive FIRs across the state under ‘Operation 1930: Cyber Safety’.
Launched on July 1, the intelligence-led operation marks a significant shift in the way cybercrime is being tackled—rather than waiting for victims to lose money and lodge complaints, police are using data analysis, financial trails and field verification to identify the accounts, SIM cards, ATM channels and intermediaries allegedly used by cybercriminals.
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The scale of the operation is stark. Maharashtra Cyber identified 2,717 Layer-1 money mule accounts across 57 banks, linked to disputed transactions worth approximately ₹12.57 crore. Another 3,597 bank accounts associated with cheque withdrawals were flagged, involving transactions worth around ₹89.30 crore and links to 2,171 bank branches.
Investigators also identified 17,014 bank accounts and 10,075 ATM IDs connected to fraudulent ATM withdrawals involving approximately ₹70.14 crore. The investigation has now extended into the telecom network supporting these crimes, with 5,684 suspect SIM cards linked to 7,312 cybercrime complaints identified for verification and action against suspected users and Point of Sale sellers.
The 803 FIRs are significant because they were not merely triggered by individual victim complaints. According to Maharashtra Cyber, police registered them proactively after analysing intelligence and financial data and conducting ground-level verification.
The objective is to dismantle what investigators describe as the wider cybercrime ecosystem—money mule accounts used to receive or move stolen funds, cash-withdrawal channels used to extract money, fraudulent ATM operations, suspect SIM infrastructure and facilitators who allegedly help criminals operate anonymously. The department has simultaneously tightened the mechanism for responding to victims.
From July 10, Maharashtra introduced an E-Zero FIR mechanism for cyber financial fraud cases reported through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal. Cases involving financial fraud of more than ₹5 lakh are automatically converted into E-Zero FIRs and electronically forwarded to the concerned police units. Victims are required to visit and sign the E-FIR within 72 hours, after which police action can proceed. The state’s 1930 Cyber Helpline is receiving around 8,000 to 10,000 calls every day, according to Maharashtra Cyber.
During the first seven months of 2026, more than two lakh cybercrime complaints were handled across the state. Timely intervention and freezing of suspected fraudulent transactions helped safeguard approximately ₹514.36 crore, while the cumulative amount of citizens’ money safeguarded through intervention and freezing has crossed ₹1,700 crore, the department said.
The crackdown is also focusing on what happens after a victim’s money is frozen or recovered. Maharashtra Cyber said its Grievance Redressal Module (GRM) has resolved more than 5,800 complaints involving wrongful debit freezes or lien markings on bank accounts. Under the Money Restoration Module (MRM), victims of cyber financial fraud can have amounts of up to ₹50,000 per account restored without requiring a court order, subject to the prescribed process. Since July 1, approximately ₹25.46 crore has been restored to victims through coordinated action by police units across Maharashtra. Taken together, the figures reveal the scale of the state’s emerging cybercrime challenge—and the changing policing strategy. The focus is no longer confined to tracing the person who clicks the fraudulent link or makes the deceptive call. Investigators are increasingly following the money, identifying the accounts that receive it, the ATMs that dispense it, the SIM cards that facilitate communication and the intermediaries who allegedly keep the machinery running. Operation 1930 is, in effect, an attempt to choke the supply chain of cybercrime before it reaches the next victim.
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Original source: https://www.news18.com/
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