Cybercrime Volunteer Programme:
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The Ministry of Home Affairs launched the Cybercrime Volunteer programme.
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The programme aims to bring together citizens to contribute to the fight against cybercrime in the country. The scheme also aims to assist State/UT in their endeavour to curb cybercrimes.
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Under the programme, citizens can register themselves as Cyber Crime volunteers. They will help the law enforcement agencies in identifying, reporting and removing illegal/unlawful online content.
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The program is a constituent of the National Cybercrime Ecosystem Management Unit. This unit is in turn a part of the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre(I4C) scheme.
Concerns against the Programme:
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Culture of Surveillance: Internet Freedom Foundation(IFF), a digital rights group has said that the programme enables a culture of surveillance. The IFF also mentions that the programme could create a potential social distrust by encouraging civilians to report the online activities of other citizens.
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Chances of Misuse: There is no information available on how the Ministry will ensure that the program is not misused to extract misguided personal or political vendettas.