New Delhi: The Supreme Court has asked WhatsApp and other intermediaries to submit details of the measures they propose to implement to prevent digital arrest scams and related cybercrimes in the country.
In an order uploaded to its website following an October 29 hearing in a suo motu case titled In Re: Victims of Digital Arrest Related to Forged Documents, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant directed WhatsApp and other intermediaries to submit their proposals simultaneously to the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C).
The bench, which also comprised Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, scheduled the next hearing in the matter for November 23.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing on behalf of WhatsApp, informed the bench that the platform had already introduced preventive measures, including action against 9,400 accounts. He said WhatsApp would file an affidavit detailing the steps it had taken.
Sibal also told the court that the platform was developing software to detect suspicious accounts and alert users about potential threats.
“WhatsApp LLC (A Meta company) and other concerned intermediaries are also directed to apprise this Court of the measures they propose to undertake to prevent the digital arrest scams and related cybercrimes. They shall also simultaneously submit their proposals to the I4C,” the bench said in its order.
During the October 29 hearing, the Supreme Court had emphasised that financial institutions must be held accountable for digital arrest scams and other forms of cyber fraud. It said banks should compensate victims for their losses if investigations establish that the fraud resulted from a failure on the part of the institution to exercise due diligence.
“We reiterate and emphasise that the regulatory measures proposed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) must mandate and incorporate suitable provisions that require financial institutions to indemnify victims of digital arrest scams and other cyber frauds and pay suitable compensation not less than the amount lost by the customer, where it is established that the fraud or crime occurred due to the failure on the part of the financial institution to exercise due diligence in preventing or reporting the act/incident,” the bench said.
During the proceedings, the Chief Justice questioned why banks could not intervene when customers attempted to transfer unusually large amounts that differed significantly from their established transaction patterns.
The court's order also outlined possible safeguards that could be made mandatory for financial institutions. These include temporarily suspending unusual or suspicious transactions that deviate from an account holder's previous transaction history, automatically alerting the nearest police station and physically verifying transactions to establish their authenticity.
The bench also directed the RBI to submit a list of all authorised financial institutions before the next hearing to ensure the effective implementation of the proposed regulatory measures and the court's directions.
Observing that cybercrimes had declined by 50 per cent but victims had still lost Rs 800 crore so far this year, the bench said the RBI's proposed regulatory framework must contain enforceable provisions for compensation, preventive intervention and institutional accountability.
The Chief Justice said the court would first examine the proposed RBI Know Your Customer (KYC) Amendment Directions, 2026, before allowing the regulatory process to move forward.
The directions are expected to be notified by November 30 and operationalised by December 31.
Describing banks as a "protective umbrella" for vulnerable customers, the Chief Justice said financial institutions had access to account holders' details, including their transaction histories, and should use this information to prevent fraud before money was transferred.
Attorney General R Venkataramani, representing the Centre and other authorities, told the bench that considerable work had been undertaken to improve the detection of suspicious transactions and strengthen preventive mechanisms within the banking system.
The Supreme Court also directed law enforcement agencies across all states and Union territories to submit reports detailing the FIRs registered in digital arrest scam cases and the investigations conducted in connection with them.
The agencies were further asked to provide recommendations on measures to prevent, detect and prosecute such offences.
The directors general of police (DGPs) of all states and Union territories have been instructed to ensure compliance with the directions.
The reports must be submitted to the interdepartmental committee coordinating the government's response to the issue. The bench also directed that copies of the reports submitted to the court be forwarded to the committee.