Kolkata: The death of a 17-year-old student in Behala last year due to cyber bullying might be an extreme case but cyber crime is on the rise in Kolkata. And nowhere is this more evident than in the weekly interactions between school and college students and Kolkata and Bidhannagar police.

West Bengal – Kolkata in particular – has shown one of the biggest jumps nationwide in cyber-crime, says the National Crime Records Data for 2012. Such cases have increased by 355.8 % in Bengal in just five years. The Kolkata figures are even scarier – a 1033.3 % jump between 2011 and 2015. Among those arrested last year for cyber crimes were four students and six minors, who were treated as “sexual freaks”. The spurt in such cases also indicates that police are increasingly filing cases under IPC sections, giving the Cyber Crime Act a miss.

Among the common crimes committed by children are cyber bullying, cyber stalking, defamation and hacking into peer profiles. “The problem is that a majority of such crimes have no criminal intention. They are seen as an extension of a prank. But children often don’t realize how much danger they are playing with. We try to emphasize this point in our interactions with children. For example, we point out how a simple step like logging on to a shopping website from its domain address is safer instead of accessing it from any search engine,” said a Bidhannagar police officer.

There is another interesting aspect of this. Private detective agencies in Kolkata say the number of parents seeking professional help to keep tabs on their children’s online activities has increased manifold in the last two years. Private agencies are preferred, rather than police, to ensure secrecy, The Times of India reported.

Police are concerned by the mushrooming of internet cafes, which give children a gateway away from the strict control at home. “Though there is some control on who gets access, there is little control on what people access in these places. In the suburbs, cyber cafe owners are not much bothered about restricting entry of minors,” said an officer.

From the profile of the crimes over the last few years, police warn children not to chat with or befriend any stranger online. “Imposters take on the names of celebrities and use common names, mo8stly feminine, to woo school students. Adding people on chat ensures their mails reach the inbox and not spam. Obscene mails and message follow, which leaves students traumatized,” said the officer.