Guwahati: In a bid to create awareness among digital users concerning cyber fraud, spam and scams, a training programme on cyber safety titled #TrueCyberSafe, a nation-wide campaign, was launched at Royal Global University in Guwahati on Friday.
The training programme, which focuses on internet safety, is a joint initiative of Truecaller, a global platform for verifying contacts, and CyberPeace Foundation, a non-partisan civil society organisation, in collaboration with Assam Police.
The first-of-its kind initiative aims at creating awareness as well as training people to tackle cyber fraud for a safer online experience. The training programme will also be held in five regions across the country.
The event was graced by Harmeet Singh, Commissioner of Police, Guwahati; Anurag Goel, Principal Secretary, IT Department, Assam; Major Vineet Kumar, Global President and Founder of CyberPeace Foundation; Pragya Misra Mehrishi, Director of Public Affairs of India Truecaller, among others.
Besides, the training programme was attended by government stakeholders, students, bank officials, faculties of various universities and young entrepreneurs.
During the programme, training was imparted on safety measures that can be incorporated into daily lives to stay cyber safe.
Speaking at the event, Anurag Goel said, “The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the vulnerabilities of cyberspace, which is evident by the rise in cyber attacks in the past few years. This can only be tackled through better awareness and building the capacity of people to recognize and report cyber crimes. Taking cognizance of this issue, the government of Assam has taken several measures in the past, including organizing a month-long cyber awareness drive and issuing a one-stop guidebook on how to stay safe online.”
Echoing similar views, Harmeet Singh said, “India has seen a five-fold jump in cyber fraud cases between 2018 and 2021. As we continue our march towards technology, these negative externalities will also continue to grow. Hence, it is imperative that we take measures to empower citizens, and the first step to achieving this is raising awareness about digital safety and outlining the ways in which people can report cybercrimes. I’m certain that this nation-wide programme will go a long way in realizing this goal.”
Meanwhile, Pragya Misra Mehrishi, Director of Public Affairs of Truecaller, reiterated their commitment to making the world a safer place from cyber-attacks.
“We are excited to partner with the Assam Police and receive support from the Principal Secretary of Assam to encourage digital users to learn how to stay safe online, take steps to report cybercrimes and aid them in nurturing the faculties of critical thinking and empathy”, she added.
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