NCW launches ‘Digital Shakti Center’ to combat cybercrime against women

The National Commission for Women (NCW) launched the Digital Shakti Centre on Monday to combat cybercrime against women. The National Commission for Women, in cooperation with CyberPeace Foundation, has announced the opening of the Digital Shakti Centre. Chairperson Rekha Sharma officially kicked things off.

The Digital Shakti Centre is a dedicated resource that raises awareness about cybercrime against women and provides critical technical assistance for registering and handling complaints. With the alarming surge in cybercrime, including identity theft, cyberstalking, and sexual exploitation, this step is critical in empowering women to understand and defend themselves in the digital world, according to news agency ANI.

According to sources, this digital centre will also provide expert help to guarantee that cyber crime complaints are resolved quickly and effectively. This phase follows the success of the NCW’s Digital Shakti campaign, which debuted in 2018. The Digital Shakti campaign has touched millions of women, providing them with knowledge and tools to protect their digital spaces.

During the launch, the chairperson stated, “There has been an increase in cybercrime cases in India, growing from 52,974 in 2021 to 65,893 in 2022. The NCW has also seen an upsurge in reports about cyber crimes against women. In 2023, the Commission received 608 complaints, representing 2.2% of total complaints. As of August 1st, 2024, 386 complaints have been registered, accounting for 2.5 percent of the total.

The chairman also stated that it was critical to recognise the urgent need for action; thus, the NCW launched the Digital Shakti Campaign in June 2018 to educate women about reporting methods, data privacy, and technology use for their benefit.

She continued, “This project has encouraged women to fight cybercrime and reclaim their digital spaces. The campaign touched 6.86 lakh netizens via direct sessions and more than 2.67 crore people online. Building on this momentum, the NCW has announced the fifth phase of Digital Shakti in conjunction with the CyberPeace Foundation.”