Mammootty named Kerala Police's cyber security captain

Actor Mammootty has been named the Cyber Security Captain of Kerala Police as the state starts a campaign to raise awareness about online fraud and cybercrime. Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala made the announcement at an event at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Kochi on Saturday. The minister also launched CLICK, a programme by the Kerala Police Cyber Wing that aims to make the state more resilient to cyber threats by 2027.

Speaking at the event, Mammootty urged young people to play an active role in preventing cybercrime and asked parents to guide children towards responsible use of technology. He said giving children smartphones whenever they cry or ask for them is not good practice, and suggested basic feature phones until they are mature enough to use mobile phones responsibly. He also said artificial intelligence is making it easier to mislead people. He presented CLICK Captain caps to 10 selected students.

Chennithala said preventing cybercrime before it happens is more effective than investigating cases after people have lost money. More than 54,000 cyber fraud complaints were registered in Kerala last year, and criminals often exploit limited technical knowledge. He advised people to use strong passwords, update applications regularly, protect personal data and avoid suspicious links. Anyone who falls victim to cyber fraud should immediately call the national cybercrime helpline 1930.