Superintendent of Police E.G. Ashok Kumar inspecting the recovered mobile phones in Kadapa on Tuesday.
| Photo Credit: ARRANGEMENT
The Kadapa police, in a special drive, recovered 602 mobile phones worth nearly ₹1.8 crore and handed them over to the rightful owners.
Acting on complaints received via the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) portal, the cybercrime team of the police department recovered the mobile phones under ‘Operation Mobile Shield’. So far, 4,670 mobile phones worth ₹9.2 crore have been recovered in six phases.
Superintendent of Police E.G. Ashok Kumar, who inspected the recovered mobile phones in Kadapa on Tuesday, attributed the recovery to the use of advanced tools such as digital forensics, GPS tracking, IMEI tracing and cyber surveillance tools.
People who lost their mobile phones can contact the WhatsApp chatbot at 9392941541 to utilise the Missing Mobile Tracking System (MMTS) and the CEIR portal. “Kadapa district has shown significant progress in mobile recovery efforts across the State”, Mr. Ashok Kumar mentioned.
He advised the public not to respond to suspicious video calls, phishing emails or unknown contacts to avoid cyber fraud. “If you fall victim to a cyber scam, immediately report it to the cyber crime police and file a complaint through MMTS or CEIR for secure recovery”, was his tip.
Similarly, he cautioned the mobile users to block all their bank accounts connected to the lost phone and disable the SIM card in case of mobile phone theft. He also suggested the use of two-factor authentication and biometric security on apps like Google Pay and Phonepe.
While congratulating the Cybercrime unit for its accomplishment, Mr. Kumar also presented commendation certificates to the team members.
Published – April 15, 2025 08:23 pm IST