Hack of the day: Report cyber crime from home

The Times of India' brings you 'Hack of the Day' — a new weekday-series of quick, practical solutions to everyday hassles. Each hack is designed to save you time, money or stress, using tools and features within your reach — from government websites to everyday apps. In simple words it is: Simple fixes for smarter living.Filing a cybercrime complaint no longer means you must travel to a police station and wait in line. The national cyber crime reporting portal allows citizens to register complaints from home, upload evidence, and get a complaint number to track progress.

This matters because many scams, account takeovers, financial frauds and harassment happen online and require quick action — from blocking payments to preserving digital proof. Reporting online speeds up the process, creates a written record, and helps authorities route cases to the right cyber unit. Below is a step-by-step guide on how to file a complaint against cyber crime online.Step 1: Visit National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal — https://cybercrime.gov.in/Step 2: On the portal, you can register complaint against

Step 4: Login with user ID and password. If you are not registered on the portal, click on ‘New user’Step 5: Provide incident details by filing the Complaint Form. The form has three sections:General InformationVictim InformationCybercrime InformationStep 6: Choose the correct category and sub-category (e.g., Online Financial Fraud, Hacking, Cyber Bullying). Enter the date and time of the incident and write a clear description of what happened.Step 6: Upload supporting evidence like screenshots, bank statements, chat messages, URLs or any other proof. Step 7: Fill in your personal details and address. Here, you can upload a valid ID proof such as PAN, Voter ID or Driving Licence.Step 8: Review and submit the complaint. You will get a Complaint ID immediately via SMS and email. This ID can be used to track your complaint on the portal.