Cybercrime Complaint Format in India: Portal, 1930 and Police

A WhatsApp profile with your cousin's photograph asks for ₹40,000 for a hospital admission. You transfer it. Twenty minutes later the real cousin calls about something else, and the money is gone into an account that was opened three weeks ago in another state. What you do in the next hour decides whether any of it comes back.

This guide gives the cybercrime complaint format that works: the sequence to follow in the first twenty-four hours, the facts and identifiers that must appear in the written complaint, how the 1930 helpline and the national portal interact, and what a police station can and cannot do once the money has moved. It is written for the complainant who has to produce the document, not for a law student.

The first hour: report before you write anything

Speed matters more than prose. Call 1930, the national cybercrime financial fraud helpline, and report the transaction while it is still fresh. The helpline routes the details to the bank and to the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal's financial fraud module, which can request a freeze on the beneficiary account. A complaint drafted over three days is worth less than a phone call made in twenty minutes, because money leaves the first-layer account within hours and often moves through several accounts before the day ends.

While on the call, have ready: the transaction reference number (UTR), the amount, the exact time, the beneficiary account number or UPI ID, the app or bank used, and your own account number. After the call, file the same details on cybercrime.gov.in under the financial fraud category. The portal generates an acknowledgement number — save it. That number is the spine of everything that follows.

Preserve evidence before you touch the phone

The most common self-inflicted loss in a cyber fraud case is deleting the evidence while trying to clean up. Do not delete the chat, do not block the number until you have captured it, and do not uninstall the app through which the fraud happened.

• Screenshot the full conversation, including the profile name, the phone number and the timestamps. Scroll and capture in overlapping screenshots so nothing is missed.
• Capture the payment screen showing the UPI ID or account number, the amount and the UTR.
• Export the bank statement for the relevant date as a PDF from net banking; do not rely on a screenshot of one row.
• Save the call recording if the fraud was by phone, and note the number and duration.
• Capture the URL of any fake website or app before it is taken down, along with the page as displayed.
• Note the date and time of each event in a plain timeline document, written while your memory is accurate.

Where the fraud involved a fake investment platform or a trading app, also preserve the dashboard screenshots showing your "balance", the deposit confirmations and the withdrawal refusal. Those screens are often the only proof that the platform never intended to pay out.

What the cybercrime complaint format must contain

A written cybercrime complaint is a first information, not an essay. It should let a police officer or a bank's fraud desk identify the parties, the instrument and the loss without asking you questions. Include these elements in this order.

Complainant details and declaration

Full name, address, mobile number, email, identity proof reference and your relationship to any account used. If you are complaining on behalf of a company or an elderly relative, state your authority and attach proof. Add a line declaring that the information is true to your knowledge — false complaints are punishable, and a declaration signals seriousness.

The transaction narrative

Write it chronologically with times. "On 12 March at 10:14 am I received a WhatsApp message from +91-… using the display name … and photograph of … . The sender stated … . At 10:31 am I transferred ₹40,000 via … to UPI ID … . At 10:52 am I confirmed with the real … that no such request was made. I called 1930 at 11:05 am and filed portal complaint number … at 11:40 am." Precision is what allows the police to map the money trail.

Identifiers and the loss

List every identifier you have: mobile numbers, UPI IDs, bank account numbers, IFSC codes, website URLs, social media handles, email addresses used by the fraudster, and the UTR of each transfer. State the total loss as a figure and break it into individual transactions. Vague references to "some accounts" cannot be investigated.

The legal characterisation

You do not have to get the section right, but naming the conduct helps. Cheating by personation is covered under Section 319 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and cheating under Section 318. Identity theft and cheating by personation using a computer resource are separately addressed under Sections 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Where documents or OTPs were obtained by deception, the forgery and cheating provisions of the BNS also apply. Describe the conduct first, then cite the provisions you are confident about.

Portal, helpline and police station: which does what

These three channels are not interchangeable. Choosing the wrong one costs days.

A police station cannot refuse to register an FIR for a cognisable offence. Under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, a zero FIR can be registered at any station regardless of where the offence occurred, and it is then transferred to the station with jurisdiction. If the station declines, ask for the refusal in writing, or send the complaint to the Superintendent of Police, and in a proper case approach the Magistrate under the relevant provision of the BNSS for a direction to investigate.

Drafting the written complaint for the station

Where you lodge a complaint at a police station rather than only on the portal, the officer will usually record your statement and ask you to sign it. Read what is written before signing. Statements are often compressed into two or three lines that omit the identifiers, and a statement that does not name the beneficiary account or the UTR gives the investigating officer nothing to work with. If the officer writes a summary, ask that your written complaint be attached to it as an annexure and that the station diary number be noted on your copy.

Carry three copies of the complaint: one for the station, one for your own file with the receiving stamp, and one for the bank. Attach the evidence index to each. The index should list every screenshot by number, with a one-line description and the date it was captured, so that the officer can refer to "Annexure 4" in the case diary instead of scrolling through your phone.

If the fraud relates to a bank account, add a paragraph asking the station to send a written request to the beneficiary bank for account opening records, KYC documents and transaction statements for the relevant period. The police can obtain these; you cannot. Asking for them in the complaint saves a week of correspondence later.

Following up without losing momentum

Filing is the beginning. The money trail is worked by the cyber cell and the bank's fraud monitoring team, and your job is to keep the file alive and complete.

• Submit a written complaint to your bank the same day, quoting the 1930 reference and portal acknowledgement, and ask for the beneficiary account to be flagged.
• Reply to every query from the investigating officer within the time given, and keep a copy of each reply.
• Ask for the FIR copy and the investigation status at reasonable intervals; a polite written reminder every few weeks is more effective than repeated visits.
• If the bank refuses to act, escalate to its grievance officer and then to the RBI Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2021.
• Do not pay anyone who promises to recover the money for a fee. Recovery agents are a second fraud layered on the first.

What recovery realistically looks like

Where the money is still sitting in the first beneficiary account, a freeze followed by restitution is possible and does happen. Where it has been withdrawn in cash or converted through multiple accounts, recovery becomes difficult and slow. The police can seek production of account records, but the person operating the account is often a mule who has no assets.

This is why the criminal route and the civil route are sometimes run together. A criminal complaint pursues punishment and, where possible, restitution; a civil suit for recovery or a complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 where a cheque was involved pursues the money from a known defendant. Neither guarantees a return. Any lawyer who promises a full refund within weeks is selling something other than law.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a time limit to file a cybercrime complaint?

There is no short filing deadline for the criminal complaint itself, but the practical window for freezing funds is measured in hours. Report financial fraud on 1930 immediately and file on the portal the same day. For offences discovered later, file as soon as the evidence is preserved; delay weakens both the trail and the credibility of the account.

Can I file a cybercrime complaint anonymously?

The portal allows reporting of certain categories, such as child sexual abuse material, without revealing identity. For financial fraud you must identify yourself, because the bank and the investigating officer need to link the complaint to your account. Anonymous financial complaints are not actionable.

Does the police station have to accept my complaint?

Yes, for a cognisable offence. If the officer refuses, ask for the substance of the refusal to be recorded in the station diary, send a written complaint by registered post to the Superintendent of Police, and if that fails, apply to the Magistrate for a direction. Keep copies of every communication; the paper trail is what makes the escalation credible.

What if the fraud was through a fake investment app?

Report it as financial fraud on 1930 and the portal, and attach screenshots of the dashboard, deposit confirmations and the withdrawal refusal. These platforms often operate through payment gateways and mule accounts; the beneficiary account details shown in your bank statement are the most useful lead. Also report the app to the app store and to the website host.

Can the bank reverse a UPI transfer after I approve it?

A completed UPI transfer is not automatically reversible, but a fraud report triggers the chargeback and freeze process. The bank can raise a dispute with the beneficiary bank through the payment network, and funds can be returned if they are still available and the fraud is established. The earlier the report, the better the chance.

Drafting Support

Our drafting team prepares cybercrime complaints and bank fraud intimations — timeline-based narrative, identifier schedule, evidence index and escalation letters to the cyber cell and the bank.