Police Hold First-Ever Cyber Rally in Old City

Hyderabad:The police for the first time in the Old City organised a cyber awareness programme. Hosted at the iconic Charminar, police commissioner V.C. Sajjanar and cyber experts interacted with hundreds of residents and explained about various methods adopted by cyber criminals and ways to stay safe.

“The police interacted with elderly citizens who had several doubts on handling their devices. The experts with immense patience briefed them on cyber safety methods,” said Saif Ali Pasha, a social worker.

Sajjanar, while addressing the several hundred people who had gathered for the event, said that they should be vigilant against clicking any link provided by the fraudsters. “The fraudsters investing in our fear, greed, and lust,” he said,

Sajjanar, during the ‘Jagrut Hyderabad-Surakshit Hyderabad' event, also distributed pamphlets on cybercrime prevention. He flagged off a cybercrime awareness rally from Charminar to Madina, and administered a ‘cyber pledge’ to participants.

Sajjanar said similar programmes will be held in twin cities on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Many people were falling victim of cyber crimes due to lack of awareness. He emphasised that awareness was the first defence against cybercrime.

The police commissioner said that for the first time, cyber experts, both women and men, would be reaching out to every Old City resident, to create awareness. He invited cyber prevention volunteers to register their names as Cyber Simbas.

He urged participants to not upload private photos and personal details on social media. He noted that children, especially girls, were getting addicted to social media where they became easy targets for exploitation.

He urged people to immediately call the Helpline 1930 to report cybercrime as soon as it occurred, or file a complaint at www.cybercrime.gov.in. Doing so in the golden hour as money can be recovered. He advised people not to trust suspicious calls, links, or apps, and not to share OTPs, passwords, or bank details with anyone.

Driver Dies After Stranded Car Hit By Lorry on ORR

Hyderabad:A 26-year-old driver from Medak, who had parked his car on the ORR a lorry brushed against it and rendered it immobile, died when another lorry hit him, near Peddagolkonda in Shamshabad, on Saturday.

Police said the deceased, Kamuni Bharath, had left Medak around 5 am, with the family of Vijay Shekhar who was to be dropped at Kollapur. While Bharath was driving on the ORR, a lorry travelling hit his car from the right side. This damaged the vehicle’s front portion.

Bharath called his brother Sachin, an engineer, who asked him to move the vehicle to a side.Sachin was to arrange for a tow vehicle for the car and pick up his brother.

While he was waiting beside the car, another lorry hit Bharath and the vehicle, fatally injuring him. Shekar’s wife, Shobha Rani, who was in the car, sustained injuries. Bharath was declared dead at the Osmania General Hospital. Shobha Rani was taken to DRDO Apollo Hospital, Kanchanbagh, shamshabad inspector K, Narender Reddy said. Efforts were on to identify the two lorries that were involved in the accidents and drove away.

Woman Held for Impersonating Constable

Hyderabad:A 21-year-old woman who impersonated an Armed Reserve (AR) constable, reportedly to convince her family that she had a police job, was arrested by the Jeedimetla police on Saturday morning. Investigating officer Suresh Goud said Uma Bharathi, a resident of Qutubullapur, was stopped based on her suspicious behavior at the Cyberabad police canteen earlier. When asked for her ID, she failed to produce any valid identification.

Police said Uma had failed the constable recruitment exam two years ago. Unable to reveal this to her family, she began impersonating a constable and pretended to report for duty every day.

“She never went to any police station or attended any official assignment. Whenever there were department-related events, she bought a uniform with badges, mixed in with AR constables, clicked photographs and posted them on social media. She used these photos to convince her family and friends that she was working as a constable,” the IO said. She was apparently present at major political and cultural events.

“We are still verifying where she went daily and what she did during those hours. For now, it appears she only attended large public events to stay unnoticed. Her familiarity with departmental functioning helped her fake this,” the IO added.

Police said she was recently seen chatting comfortably with constables at the Cyberabad commissionerate canteen, which led to suspicion. The Jeedimetla police were alerted and they detained her during the vehicle check.

Some reports claimed she had delivered cybercrime awareness lectures at educational institutions by posing as a police representative, but IO Suresh denied this.