Satisfaction with the police remains low among victims of cybercrime
For representative purposes | Photo credit: Getty Images
As India undergoes a rapid digital transformation, cybercrime has become one of the fastest growing public security challenges in the country. From online financial fraud and identity theft to investment scams and phishing attacks, millions of Indians now experience crimes that often leave lasting financial and psychological consequences.
In response, governments have expanded cyber helplines, launched a National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal and set up dedicated cyber police stations in all states. Despite these institutional efforts, the State of Policing in India 2026 Report states that nearly two in three victims of cybercrime (63%) remain dissatisfied with how the police handle their complaints, with one in five reporting that they are very dissatisfied. Findings suggest that while access to reporting mechanisms has improved significantly, improvements in availability have not matched victims’ experience of justice, leaving the gap between registration of complaints and effective police response the weakest link in India’s cyberpolicing system (Table 1).
The satisfaction index combines victims’ experiences in four stages: cyber helpline, online portal, complaint registration and police investigation.
Victims report the highest level of satisfaction at the point of first contact, with half of helpline users expressing satisfaction (‘very and somewhat satisfied’). However, trust continues to decline as complaints move through the system, to 47% for the online portal, 46% during the registration of complaints and just 43% for police investigations. The findings suggest that the biggest challenge lies not in reporting cybercrime, but in bringing complaints to a satisfactory resolution (Table 2).
Victims lose confidence
But the experience is not uniform. Women appear to have significantly worse experiences than men (Table 3). While the level of average dissatisfaction is the same for both sexes (42%), the difference increases in the most serious category. More than one in four women (26%) said they were very dissatisfied, compared to less than one in five men (18%).
For many victims, the call to report cybercrime is not only procedural but also time-consuming. 34 percent of those who visited a police station to complain to the police waited between two and three hours, while a further 14% spent more than four hours before receiving help. Only 29% were processed within an hour (Table 4). The findings suggest that long waiting times continue to shape citizens’ experiences of accessing police services. Even when reporting mechanisms are in place, delays at the police station can deter victims from filing a complaint, particularly in cases involving financial loss or repeated surveillance.
Registration and handling of a complaint rarely ends with a single visit, as shown in Table 5. While 31% of victims reported visiting the police station only once or twice, almost one in four had to return five or more times (23%). Victims in rural areas reported twice the incidence of five or more visits to the police station (38%) compared to those residing in urban areas (19%). Return visits involve lost work time, travel expenses and administrative uncertainty, highlighting the need for more efficient case management and better communication during investigations.
Table 6 shows that victims’ experiences with registering a complaint are mixed. A modest majority (57%) describe the process as very or somewhat easy, but 42% find it somewhat or very difficult. Across gender, women respondents rated the process easier than men (61% and 54%, respectively).
India’s cyber policing architecture has expanded rapidly over the past decade, reflecting the growing recognition of digital crime as a major governance challenge. However, the experiences of victims of cybercrime suggest that institutional capacity is still uneven where it matters most: investigation, monitoring and victim support. The findings underscore a broader lesson for policing reforms: strengthening public trust requires moving from simpler reporting mechanisms to a system that is responsive, transparent and capable of delivering timely justice.
Krishangi Sinha is a researcher at Lokniti-CSDS. Opinions expressed are personal. This analysis is based on data collected during a comprehensive study on the State of Policing in India Report 2026 jointly conducted by Lokniti-CSDS & Common Cause.
Published – 1 October 2026 08:30 IST