#FactCheck-Mosque fire in India? False, it's from Indonesia

In the past decade, India’s gaming sector has seen a surprising but swift advancement, which brought along millions of players and over billions in investments and has even been estimated to be at $23 billion. Whether it's fantasy cricket and Ludo apps, high-stakes poker, or rummy platforms, investing real money in online gaming and gambling has become a beloved hobby for many. Moreover, it not only gave a boost to the economy but also contributed to creative innovation and the generation of employment.

The real concern lies behind the glossy numbers, tales of addiction, financial detriment, and the never-ending game of cat and mouse with legal loopholes. The sector’s meteoric rise has raised various concerns relating to national financial integrity, regulatory clarity and consumer safety. 

In light of this, the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, which was passed by Parliament and signed into law on August 22, stands out as a significant development. The Act, which is positioned as a consumer protection and sector-defining law, aims to distinguish between innovation and exploitation by acknowledging e-sport as a legitimate activity and establishing unambiguous boundaries around the larger gaming industry. 

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Key Highlights of the Act

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• Complete Ban on all games involving Real-Money: All e-games, whether based on skill or luck, that involve monetary stakes have been banned.
• Prohibition of Ads: Promotion of such e-games has also been disallowed across all platforms.
• Legal Ramifications: Operation of such games may lead to up to 3 years in prison with a 1 cr fine; Advertisement for the same may lead to up to 2 years in prison with a 50 lakh fine. However, in case of repeat offences, this may go up to 3-5 years in prison and 2 cr in fines.
• Creation of Online Gaming Authority: The creation of a national-level regulatory body to classify and monitor games, register platforms and enforce the dedicated rules.
• Support for eSports and Social & Educational games: All kinds of games that are non-monetary, promote social and educational growth, will not only be recognised but encouraged. Meanwhile, eSports will also gain official recognition under the Ministry of Sports.

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Positive Impacts

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• Addressal & Tackling of Addiction and Financial Ruin: The major reason behind the ban is to reduce the cases of players, mainly youth, getting into gambling and losing huge amounts of money to betting apps and games, and to protect vulnerable users 
• Boost to eSports & Regulatory Clarity: The law not only legitimises the eSport sector but also provides opportunities for scholarship and other financial benefits, along with windows for professional tournaments and platforms on global stages. Along with this aims to bring about an order around e-games of skill versus luck.
• Fraud Monitoring & Control: The law makes sure to block off avenues for money laundering, gambling and illegal betting networks.
• Promotion of Safe Digital Ecosystem: Encouraging social, developmental and educational games to focus on skill, learning and fun.

Challenges

The fact that the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 is still in its early stages, which must be recognised. In the end, its effectiveness will rely not only on the letter of the law but on the strength of its enforcement and the wisdom of its application. The Act has the potential to safeguard the interests of at-risk youth from the dangers of gambling and its addiction, if it is applied carefully and clearly, all the while maintaining the digital ecosystem as a place of innovation, equity, and trust.

• Blanket Ban: By imposing a blanket ban on games that have long been justified as skill-based like rummy or fantasy cricket, the Act runs the risk of suppressing respectable enterprises and centres of innovation. Many startups that were once hailed for being at the forefront of India’s digital innovation may now find it difficult to thrive in an unpredictable regulatory environment.
• Rise of Illegal Platforms: History offers a sobering lesson, prohibition does not eliminate demand, it simply drives it underground. The prohibition of money games may encourage the growth of unregulated, offshore sites, where players are more vulnerable to fraud, data theft, and abuse and have no way to seek consumer protection.
  
  

Conclusion

The Act is definitely a tough and bold stand to check and regulate India’s digital gaming industry, but it is also a double-edged sword. It brings in much-needed consumer protection regulations in place and legitimises e-Sports. However, it also casts a long shadow over a successful economy and runs the risk of fostering a black market that is more harmful than the issue it was intended to address. 

Therefore, striking a balance between innovation and protection, between law and liberty, will be considered more important in the coming years than the success of regulations alone. India’s legitimacy as a digital economy ready for global leadership, as well as the future of its gaming industry, will depend on how it handles this delicate balance. 

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References: 

1. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/technology/gaming-bodies-write-to-amit-shah-urge-to-block-blanket-ban-warn-of-rs-20000-crore-tax-loss/articleshow/123392342.cms
2. https://m.economictimes.com/news/india/govt-estimates-45-cr-people-lose-about-rs-20000-cr-annually-from-real-money-gaming/articleshow/123408237.cms
3. https://www.cyberpeace.org/resources/blogs/promotion-and-regulation-of-online-gaming-bill-2025-gets-green-flag-from-both-houses-of-parliament
4. https://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/real-money-gaming-firms-wind-down-operations/article69965196.ece

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Executive Summary:
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Amid the ongoing tensions and conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran, an image of a heavily damaged industrial facility is circulating widely on social media. Several users are sharing the picture claiming that it shows an Iranian water treatment or desalination plant destroyed in a US–Israel attack. Some media reports have also used the same image while reporting on the alleged attack on a freshwater desalination plant in Iran.

However, a research by the CyberPeace found that the claim is misleading. The viral image is not from Iran. It actually shows the aftermath of a drone attack on a warehouse belonging to a US company in Basra, Iraq.

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Claim

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X user “Shashank Shekhar Jha” shared the image on March 8, 2026, claiming that a freshwater desalination plant in Qeshm, Iran, had been destroyed.
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• https://x.com/shashank_ssj/status/2030499812198830203?s=20 
• https://perma.cc/6SR8-4VGN 

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Fact check
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To verify the claim, we conducted a reverse image search using Google Lens. During the search, we found a report published on March 7, 2026, on the website of Asian News International (ANI). The report stated that Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi condemned a US attack on a freshwater desalination plant on Qeshm Island, calling it a “blatant and desperate crime.”

The report used the same viral image; however, the caption clearly mentioned that it was a representational image credited to Reuters.

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https://www.aninews.in/news/world/middle-east/blatant-and-desperate-crime-irans-fm-condemns-us-attack-on-qeshms-freshwater-desalination-plant-warns-of-grave-consequences20260307212645/
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To further confirm the claim, we checked the official X account of Seyed Abbas Araghchi. In a post on March 7, he condemned the alleged attack on the desalination plant in Qeshm and stated that the strike had disrupted water supply to around 30 villages. However, the post did not include any image of the incident.

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Conclusion
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The viral image being shared as evidence of a US–Israel attack on Iran’s water treatment plant is misleading. The photo actually shows the aftermath of a drone strike on a warehouse belonging to a US company in Basra, Iraq, and has been wrongly linked to the situation in Iran.

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Introduction

As the 2024 Diwali festive season approaches, netizens eagerly embrace the spirit of celebration with online shopping, gifting, and searching for the best festive deals on online platforms. Historical web data from India shows that netizens' online activity spikes at this time as people shop online to upgrade their homes, buy unique presents for loved ones and look for services and products to make their celebrations more joyful.

However, with the increase in online transactions and digital interactions, cybercriminals take advantage of the festive rush by enticing users with fake schemes, fake coupons offering freebies, fake offers of discounted jewellery, counterfeit product sales, festival lotteries, fake lucky draws and charity appeals, malicious websites and more. Cybercrimes, especially phishing attempts, also spike in proportion to user activity and shopping trends at this time.

Hence, it becomes important for all netizens to stay alert, making sure their personal information and financial data is protected and ensure that they exercise due care and caution before clicking on any suspicious links or offers. Additionally, brands and platforms also must make strong cybersecurity a top priority to safeguard their customers and build trust.

Diwali Season and Phishing Attempts 

Last year's report from CloudSEK's research team noted an uptick in cyber threats during the Diwali period, where cybercriminals leveraged the festive mood to launch phishing, betting and crypto scams. The report revealed that phishing attempts target the e-commerce industries and seek to damage the image of reputable brands. An astounding 828 distinct domains devoted to phishing activities were found in the Facebook Ads Library by CloudSEK's investigators. The report also highlighted the use of typosquatting techniques to create phony-but-plausible domains that trick users into believing they are legitimate websites, by exploiting common typing errors or misspellings of popular domain names. As fraudsters are increasingly misusing AI and deepfake technologies to their advantage, we expect even more of these dangers to surface this year over the festive season.

CyberPeace Advisory

It is important that netizens exercise caution, especially during the festive period and follow cyber safety practices to avoid cybercrimes and phishing attempts. Some of the cyber hygiene best practices suggested by CyberPeace are as follows:

• Netizens must verify the sender’s email, address, and domain with the official site for the brand/ entity the sender claims to be affiliated with. 
• Netizens must avoid clicking links received through email, messages or shared on social media and consider visiting the official website directly. 
• Beware of urgent, time-sensitive offers pressuring immediate action. 
• Spot phishing signs like spelling errors and suspicious URLs to avoid typosquatting tactics used by cybercriminals.
• Netizens must enable two-factor authentication (2FA) for an additional layer of security.
• Have authenticated antivirus software and malware detection software installed on your devices. 
• Be wary of unsolicited festive deals, gifts and offers. 
• Stay informed on common tactics used by cybercriminals to launch phishing attacks and recognise the red flags of any phishing attempts.
• To report cybercrimes, file a complaint at cybercrime.gov.in or helpline number 1930. You can also seek assistance from the CyberPeace helpline at +91 9570000066.

References

1. https://www.outlookmoney.com/plan/financial-plan/this-diwali-beware-of-these-financial-scams
2. https://www.businesstoday.in/technology/news/story/diwali-and-pooja-domains-being-exploited-by-online-scams-see-tips-to-help-you-stay-safe-405323-2023-11-10
3. https://www.abplive.com/states/bihar/bihar-crime-news-15-cyber-fraud-arrested-in-nawada-before-diwali-2024-ann-2805088
4. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/technology/phishing-you-a-happy-diwali-ai-advancements-pave-way-for-cybercriminals/articleshow/113966675.cms?from=mdr

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