Launch of Central Suspect Registry to Combat Cyber Crimes
Introduction
The Indian government has introduced initiatives to enhance data sharing between law enforcement and stakeholders to combat cybercrime. Union Home Minister Amit Shah has launched the Central Suspect Registry, Cyber Fraud Mitigation Center, Samanvay Platform and Cyber Commandos programme on the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) Foundation Day celebration took place on the 10th September 2024 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. The ‘Central Suspect Registry’ will serve as a central-level database with consolidated data on cybercrime suspects nationwide. The Indian Cyber Crime Coordinating Center will share a list of all repeat offenders on their servers. Shri Shah added that the Suspect Registry at the central level and connecting the states with it will help in the prevention of cybercrime.
Key Highlights of Central Suspect Registry
The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) has established the suspect registry in collaboration with banks and financial intermediaries to enhance fraud risk management in the financial ecosystem. The registry will serve as a central-level database with consolidated data on cybercrime suspects. Using data from the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP), the registry makes it possible to identify cybercriminals as potential threats.
Central Suspect Registry Need of the Hour
The Union Home Minister of India, Shri Shah, has emphasized the need for a national Cyber Suspect Registry to combat cybercrime. He argued that having separate registries for each state would not be effective, as cybercriminals have no boundaries. He emphasized the importance of connecting states to this platform, stating it would significantly help prevent future cyber crimes.
CyberPeace Outlook
There has been an alarming uptick in cybercrimes in the country highlighting the need for proactive approaches to counter the emerging threats. The recently launched initiatives under the umbrella of the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre will serve as significant steps taken by the centre to improve coordination between law enforcement agencies, strengthen user awareness, and offer technical capabilities to target cyber criminals and overall aim to combat the growing rate of cybercrime in the country.
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Introduction
In September 2025, social media feeds were flooded with strikingly vintage saree-type portraits. These images were not taken by professional photographers, but AI-generated images. More than a million people turned to the "Nano Banana" AI tool of Google Gemini, uploading their ordinary selfies and watching them transform into Bollywood-style, cinematic, 1990s posters. The popularity of this trend is evident, as are the concerns of law enforcement agencies and cybersecurity experts regarding risks of infringement of privacy, unauthorised data sharing, and threats related to deepfake misuse.
What is the Trend?
This trend in AI sarees is created using Google Geminis' Nano Banana image-editing tool, editing and morphing uploaded selfies into glitzy vintage portraits in traditional Indian attire. A user would upload a clear photograph of a solo subject and enter prompts to generate images of cinematic backgrounds, flowing chiffon sarees, golden-hour ambience, and grainy film texture, reminiscent of classic Bollywood imagery. Since its launch, the tool has processed over 500 million images, with the saree trend marking one of its most popular uses. Photographs are uploaded to an AI system, which uses machine learning to alter the pictures according to the description specified. The transformed AI portraits are then shared by users on their Instagram, WhatsApp, and other social media platforms, thereby contributing to the viral nature of the trend.
Law Enforcement Agency Warnings
- A few Indian police agencies have issued strong advisories against participation in such trends. IPS Officer VC Sajjanar warned the public: "The uploading of just one personal photograph can make greedy operators go from clicking their fingers to joining hands with criminals and emptying one's bank account." His advisory had further warned that sharing personal information through trending apps can lead to many scams and fraud.
- Jalandhar Rural Police issued a comprehensive warning stating that such applications put the user at risk of identity theft and online fraud when personal pictures are uploaded. A senior police officer stated: "Once sensitive facial data is uploaded, it can be stored, analysed, and even potentially misused to open the way for cyber fraud, impersonation, and digital identity crimes.
The Cyber Crime Police also put out warnings on social media platforms regarding how photo applications appear entertaining but can pose serious risks to user privacy. They specifically warned that selfies uploaded can lead to data misuse, deepfake creation, and the generation of fake profiles, which are punishable under Sections 66C and 66D of the IT Act 2000.
Consequences of Such Trends
The massification of AI photo trends has several severe effects on private users and society as a whole. Identity fraud and theft are the main issues, as uploaded biometric information can be used by hackers to generate imitated identities, evading security measures or committing financial fraud. The facial recognition information shared by means of these trends remains a digital asset that could be abused years after the trend has passed. ‘Deepfake’ production is another tremendous threat because personal images shared on AI platforms can be utilised to create non-consensual artificial media. Studies have found that more than 95,000 deepfake videos circulated online in 2023 alone, a 550% increase from 2019. The images uploaded can be leveraged to produce embarrassing or harmful content that can cause damage to personal reputation, relationships, and career prospects.
Financial exploitation is also when fake applications in the guise of genuine AI tools strip users of their personal data and financial details. Such malicious platforms tend to look like well-known services so as to trick users into divulging sensitive information. Long-term privacy infringement also comes about due to the permanent retention and possible commercial exploitation of personal biometric information by AI firms, even when users close down their accounts.
Privacy Risks
A few months ago, the Ghibli trend went viral, and now this new trend has taken over. Such trends may subject users to several layers of privacy threats that go far beyond the instant gratification of taking pleasing images. Harvesting of biometric data is the most critical issue since facial recognition information posted on these sites becomes inextricably linked with user identities. Under Google's privacy policy for Gemini tools, uploaded images might be stored temporarily for processing and may be kept for longer periods if used for feedback purposes or feature development.
Illegal data sharing happens when AI platforms provide user-uploaded content to third parties without user consent. A Mozilla Foundation study in 2023 discovered that 80% of popular AI apps had either non-transparent data policies or obscured the ability of users to opt out of data gathering. This opens up opportunities for personal photographs to be shared with anonymous entities for commercial use. Exploitation of training data includes the use of personal photos uploaded to enhance AI models without notifying or compensating users. Although Google provides users with options to turn off data sharing within privacy settings, most users are ignorant of these capabilities. Integration of cross-platform data increases privacy threats when AI applications use data from interlinked social media profiles, providing detailed user profiles that can be taken advantage of for purposeful manipulation or fraud. Inadequacy of informed consent continues to be a major problem, with users engaging in trends unaware of the entire context of sharing information. Studies show that 68% of individuals show concern regarding the misuse of AI app data, but 42% use these apps without going through the terms and conditions.
CyberPeace Expert Recommendations
While the Google Gemini image trend feature operates under its own terms and conditions, it is important to remember that many other tools and applications allow users to generate similar content. Not every platform can be trusted without scrutiny, so users who engage in such trends should do so only on trustworthy platforms and make reliable, informed choices. Above all, following cybersecurity best practices and digital security principles remains essential.
Here are some best practices:-
1.Immediate Protection Measures for User
In a nutshell, protection of personal information may begin by not uploading high-resolution personal photos into AI-based applications, especially those trained for facial recognition. Instead, a person can play with stock images or non-identifiable pictures to the degree that it satisfies the program's creative features without compromising biometric security. Strong privacy settings should exist on every social media platform and AI app by which a person can either limit access to their data, content, or anything else.
2.Organisational Safeguards
AI governance frameworks within organisations should enumerate policies regarding the usage of AI tools by employees, particularly those concerning the upload of personal data. Companies should appropriately carry out due diligence before the adoption of an AI product made commercially available for their own use in order to ensure that such a product has its privacy and security levels as suitable as intended by the company. Training should instruct employees regarding deepfake technology.
3.Technical Protection Strategies
Deepfake detection software should be used. These tools, which include Microsoft Video Authenticator, Intel FakeCatcher, and Sensity AI, allow real-time detection with an accuracy higher than 95%. Use blockchain-based concepts to verify content to create tamper-proof records of original digital assets so that the method of proposing deepfake content as original remains very difficult.
4.Policy and Awareness Initiatives
For high-risk transactions, especially in banks and identity verification systems, authentication should include voice and face liveness checks to ensure the person is real and not using fake or manipulated media. Implement digital literacy programs to empower users with knowledge about AI threats, deepfake detection techniques, and safe digital practices. Companies should also liaise with law enforcement, reporting purported AI crimes, thus offering assistance in combating malicious applications of synthetic media technology.
5.Addressing Data Transparency and Cross-Border AI Security
Regulatory systems need to be called for requiring the transparency of data policies in AI applications, along with providing the rights and choices to users regarding either Biometric data or any other data. Promotion must be given to the indigenous development of AI pertaining to India-centric privacy concerns, assuring the creation of AI models in a secure, transparent, and accountable manner. In respect of cross-border AI security concerns, there must be international cooperation for setting common standards of ethical design, production, and use of AI. With the virus-like contagiousness of AI phenomena such as saree editing trends, they portray the potential and hazards of the present-day generation of artificial intelligence. While such tools offer newer opportunities, they also pose grave privacy and security concerns, which should have been considered quite some time ago by users, organisations, and policy-makers. Through the setting up of all-around protection mechanisms and keeping an active eye on digital privacy, both individuals and institutions will reap the benefits of this AI innovation, and they shall not fall on the darker side of malicious exploitation.
References
- https://www.hindustantimes.com/trending/amid-google-gemini-nano-banana-ai-trend-ips-officer-warns-people-about-online-scams-101757980904282.html%202
- https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/india/viral-banana-ai-saree-selfies-may-risk-fraud-warn-jalandhar-rural-police-13549443.html
- https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/researchpapers/Documents/Sexually%20explicit%20deepfakes.pdf
- https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/our-insights/the-state-of-ai-in-2023-generative-ais-breakout-year
- https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/our-insights/the-state-of-ai-in-2023-generative-ais-breakout-year
- https://socradar.io/top-10-ai-deepfake-detection-tools-2025/
Executive Summary:
A morphed video of the actor Anup Soni popular on social media promoting IPL betting Telegram channel is found to be fake. The audio in the morphed video is produced through AI voice cloning. AI manipulation was identified by AI detection tools and deepfake analysis tools. In the original footage Mr Soni explains a case of crime, a part of the popular show Crime Patrol which is unrelated to betting. Therefore, it is important to draw the conclusion that Anup Soni is in no way associated with the betting channel.
Claims:
The facebook post claims the IPL betting Telegram channel which belongs to Rohit Khattar is promoted by Actor Anup Soni.
Fact Check:
Upon receiving the post, the CyberPeace Research Team closely analyzed the video and found major discrepancies which are mostly seen in AI-manipulated videos. The lip sync of the video does not match the audio. Taking a cue from this we analyzed using a Deepfake detection tool by True Media. It is found that the voice of the video is 100% AI-generated.
We then extracted the audio and checked in an audio Deepfake detection tool named Hive Moderation. Hive moderation found the audio to be 99.9% AI-Generated.
We then divided the video into keyframes and reverse searched one of the keyframes and found the original video uploaded by the YouTube channel named LIV Crime.
Upon analyzing we found that in the 3:18 time frame the video was edited, and altered with an AI voice.
Hence, the viral video is an AI manipulated video and it’s not real. We have previously debunked such AI voice manipulation with different celebrities and politicians to misrepresent the actual context. Netizens must be careful while believing in such AI manipulation videos.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, the viral video claiming that IPL betting Telegram channel promotion by actor Anup Soni is false. The video has been manipulated using AI voice cloning technology, as confirmed by both the Hive Moderation AI detector and the True Media AI detection tool. Therefore, the claim is baseless and misleading.
- Claim: An IPL betting Telegram channel belonging to Rohit Khattar promoted by Actor Anup Soni.
- Claimed on: Facebook
- Fact Check: Fake & Misleading
Executive Summary
A dispute had recently emerged in Kotdwar, Uttarakhand, over the name of a shop. During the controversy, a local youth, Deepak Kumar, came forward in support of the shopkeeper. The incident subsequently became a subject of discussion on social media, with users expressing varied reactions. Meanwhile, a photo began circulating on social media showing a burqa-clad woman presenting a bouquet to Deepak Kumar. The image is being shared with the claim that All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM)’s women’s president, Rubina, welcomed “Mohammad Deepak Kumar” by presenting him with a bouquet. However, research conducted by the CyberPeace found the viral claim to be false. The research revealed that users are sharing an AI-generated image with a misleading claim.
Claim:
On social media platform Instagram, a user shared the viral image claiming that AIMIM’s women’s president Rubina welcomed “Mohammad Deepak Kumar” by presenting him with a bouquet. The link to the post, its archived version, and a screenshot are provided below.
Fact Check:
Upon closely examining the viral image, certain inconsistencies raised suspicion that it could be AI-generated. To verify its authenticity, the image was analysed using the AI detection tool Hive Moderation, which indicated a 96 percent probability that the image was AI-generated.
In the next stage of the research , the image was also analysed using another AI detection tool, Wasit AI, which likewise identified the image as AI-generated.
Conclusion
The research establishes that users are circulating an AI-generated image with a misleading claim linking it to the Kotdwar controversy.
