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Hyderabad: In a major crackdown on repeat offenders involved in online child sexual exploitation, the Telangana Cyber Security Bureau (TGCSB) has arrested 15 individuals during a statewide special operation led by its Child Protection Unit (CPU).
Announcing the details at a press conference, TGCSB Director Shikha Goel said the arrests targeted individuals who habitually uploaded, stored, and circulated sexually explicit material involving minors. The operation was conducted in multiple locations including Hyderabad, Yadagirigutta, Karimnagar, Warangal, Jagtial, and Jagadgirigutta.
The arrested individuals, aged between 19 and 50 years, were linked to 57 cyber tipline complaints, leading to the registration of 34 FIRs under Sections 67 and 67B of the IT Act and Section 15 of the POCSO Act. Of these, 17 cases were filed in TGCSB’s Cyber Crime Police Stations (CCPSs).
Most of the accused belong to working or middle-class backgrounds, and the content largely featured foreign minors, with victims appearing to be girls aged 6 to 14 years.
All 15 accused have been remanded to judicial custody, Goel said. Investigations are ongoing to identify victims, trace content origins, and expose larger networks involved in creating, distributing, or purchasing such material.
“This operation underscores TGCSB’s firm commitment to protecting children online and ensuring that those involved in such heinous crimes are brought to justice,” Goel stated. She added that the arrests are also meant to send a strong warning to others engaging in such illegal activity.
The Child Protection Unit (CPU), launched in February 2025 during the SHIELD 2025 Cyber Security Conclave by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, plays a proactive role in monitoring and curbing digital circulation of child sexual abuse material (CSEAM).
TGCSB acts as the nodal agency for handling CSEAM-related complaints, including those received via the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP), Cyber Tiplines, and Case Monitoring Tools (CMT) of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). It also tracks such activity across social media, and conducts surveillance on the dark and deep web.
Since the CPU’s inception, it has filed 294 FIRs and arrested 110 accused in just four months, compared to 37 FIRs and 34 arrests in the two years prior.
The TGCSB urged the public to stay alert and report any suspicious content or online activity involving children. Reports can be made at http://www.cybercrime.gov.in under the Women & Child tab, or by dialling 1930.
Director Goel also appreciated the efforts of Harshavardhan (SP, CS\&A) and DSPs N. Vasu, K.V. Surya Prakash, K.V.M. Prasad, Y. Venkateshwarlu, Narsimha Reddy, and their teams for their work in this operation.
This post was last modified on June 20, 2025 3:14 pm