Do not keep bank details on your mobile phones and do not allow the “criminal” calling you to link his phone or call to your account to get access to your bank, the commissioner of Kolkata Police, Manoj Verma, told school students on Wednesday morning.

The “pattern of crime” has changed from dacoity and murder to cyber crime, he said.

“The traditional crime of dacoity or murder has come down over a period of time. Because money is easily available in the bank and you can have access to the banks through electronic media, criminals have become much smarter,” said Verma.

“They (the criminals) may not be educated. We have seen some of the cyber criminals educated up to Classes IV, V, or VI but they are smart in using technology and can access your bank account and siphon off your money easily if you fall into their trap,” he said.

The top cop was at St Stephen’s School in Bowbazar for an hour on Wednesday morning. He went around the school, to classrooms, and interacted with a group of students from Classes VI to X.

He told the students, a generation hooked to smart devices, that cybercrime has gone up with the invention of the mobile phone and the linking of the mobile phones with bank accounts.

“The best way to avoid your money being siphoned off is to delink your mobile phone with your account. That process is not that easy. You should not allow the person calling you, the criminal, to link his phone or call to your account. That is where you have to have a clear-cut line. If you don’t permit it, they will not have access to your bank,” he said.

Verma cautioned against taking phone calls from unknown numbers without cross-checking. Downloading a link can compromise the phone’s security and the chances of the data getting transferred to the person who has sent the link is high.

“So don’t fall into that kind of trap. Don’t keep much data about your bank on your mobile phone. It is not needed. You can keep it in your diary,” he said. He told the students that earlier people used to keep registers for such details.

Verma said that if they have fallen into the trap and lost money, they should immediately go to the nearest police station and lodge a complaint.

“There is a national portal (cybercrime.gov.in), where you can log in and lodge your complaint. Automatically, they will be asking for some details so put those details in and log in and if the money has not been extracted probably you will get all your money back,” said Verma.

The crucial thing is to log in as early as possible into the national portal, he said.

He gave the example that even after a month and a half later the police could recover Rs. 66 lakh because the money was not taken out and kept somewhere in a wallet, he
said.

“You must ensure that all members in your family, friends, relatives, they are also aware of the entire process,” he said.

Honorary secretary of the school Imran Zaki said that the session helped to allay the apprehensions of teachers and students as well.

“They were told in simple and clear terms the dos and don’ts of the digital world. At this age, almost all students use smart devices and their screen time is high which makes them susceptible to crimes. This kind of a meaningful engagement would make them aware,” said Zaki.

The students can pass on the online rules that should be followed to their parents and grandparents, said Zaki.