vulnerability to cyber frauds

Gist A recent study by Lokniti-CSDS and Common Cause, paired with NCRB data, reveals a sharp spike in cybercrimes across India even as overall registered crimes have declined. The findings overturn the conventional assumption that digital illiteracy drives victimhood, showing instead that wealthier and highly educated citizens with larger digital footprints are significantly more likely to fall prey to financial frauds. For an aspirant, this signals a major shift in cybersecurity dynamics, indicating that fraud has evolved from a tax on carelessness to a "tax on connectivity" that exploits institutional trust rather than mere technical ignorance. Background The formal tracking of crime in India relies on the National Crime Records Bureau NCRB , which aggregates formally registered police cases. However, cyber fraud is chronically under-reported, meaning official statistics only capture a fraction of the reality. To measure the invisible layer of unrecorded offenses, the Lokniti-Centre for the Study of Developing Societies CSDS and Common Cause conducted a large-scale citizen survey for their upcoming 'The Status of Policing in India Report 2026'. Previously, it was widely assumed that poorer, less educated…