Lucknow: Girls accounted for 75% of the 24 children rescued in 22 cybercrime cases registered across Uttar Pradesh , police records show. Of the rescued minors, 18 were girls, and 10 children were aged 10 years or below, pointing to a pattern of online sexual exploitation affecting both adolescents and very young children.
Several other cases involved children aged six, seven, nine and 10, alongside teenagers aged 15, 16 and 17. The cases were reported from multiple districts, including Bulandshahr, Azamgarh, Rampur, Bijnor, Kanpur Nagar and Lucknow, and involved victims across a wide age range. Among the youngest were a two-year-old boy in Lucknow and a two-year-old girl in Bijnor, the records state.
Offenders allegedly targeted children by masking their identities online or by using proximity and familiarity to access victims through family, neighbourhood and social links, according to the Cyber Crime Police. A senior officer at Uttar Pradesh Cyber Crime Headquarters said complaints reach police mainly through National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) CyberTipline and National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP). Investigators noted that in some instances, objectionable photos and videos of minors were allegedly created and used to blackmail children into unlawful acts. The material was also reportedly circulated or sold using online platforms. Under an MoU between Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre and NCMEC, referrals flagged by technology platforms are routed to I4C’s OCWC unit and shared with states. In Uttar Pradesh, Cyber Crime Headquarters analyses inputs, forwards them to districts and commissionerates, and upon verification registers FIRs, conducts investigations, arrests the accused and files charge sheets, while taking steps for victim protection.