Experts say 90% criminal cases involve digital evidence and 98% of prosecutors say digital evidence is pivotal, adding that digital evidence is no longer optional but essential.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
GUWAHATI
System constraints, including limited remote capabilities, were holding back investigations into the growing instances of cybercrimes and cyberattacks, mostly from unfriendly countries, cybersecurity experts said on Wednesday (November 19, 2025).
The experts, who converged at Gauhati University for a national conference on “cybersecurity, digital forensics, and intelligence”, called for a resilient Artificial Intelligence-driven defence mechanism and investigation process, apart from creating greater awareness.
The two-day conference is being organised by the National Institute of Electronics, Information and Technology (NEILIT).
According to these experts, investigations into cybersecurity breaches due to the system constraints and “too many disconnected threads” can be fast-tracked with the adoption of proper AI tools and the skilling of the users
“India lost ₹22,845 crore to cyberfraud in 2024, a 205.6% surge from the previous year. Over 36 lakh financial fraud cases and about 20.5 lakh cybersecurity incidents were reported to the national nodal agency CERT-In in 2024, up from 15.9 lakh in 2023, showing the growing scale of attacks,” Keshri Kumar Asthana, Microsoft’s head of public sector, said.
He said the average cost of a data breach in India in 2025 is ₹22 crore, the highest on record, driven by gaps in governance and security. Around 83% of the organisations in the country experience more than one data breach in their lifetime.
“The cost is high as the incidents are being caught late. The attackers are not thinking linearly but in graphs, and the defence too has to think in graphs to stop their graphical thinking,” he said.
‘Constantly watched’
Wipro’s global data privacy officer, Sandesh Jadhav, advised people to exercise caution while using social media and other digital platforms. “You are being watched continuously,’ he warned.
Shreekrishna Ashutosh of Cellebrite said 50% of the agencies in India have reported case backlogs year-on-year, while 60% of the investigators are still relying on outdated methods. “The average time spent per case reviewing digital evidence is 69 hours,” he said.
Asserting that 90% criminal cases involve digital evidence and 98% of prosecutors say digital evidence is pivotal, the experts stated that digital evidence is no longer optional but essential.
L. Lanuwabang, the Director of NEILIT (Assam and Nagaland), said the conference was a part of the ‘Cyber Secure Bharat’ mission. “A secure India is the foundation of a strong digital future by addressing cybercrime, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and emerging threats, and to build greater cybersecurity awareness among citizens,” he said.
Published – November 20, 2025 04:32 am IST
