KATHMANDU: Inspector General of Police Dan Bahadur Karki has said the absence of registered liaison offices of social media platforms in Nepal has made it difficult to resolve cybercrime cases.
Briefing a meeting of the Federalism Strengthening and National Concerns Committee under the National Assembly of Nepal on Thursday, Karki said misuse of social media is on the rise.
According to him, platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp are increasingly being used to create fake accounts, spread abusive content, disseminate misinformation and carry out digital banking-related crimes.
He said such activities have made it difficult to ensure timely justice for victims.
Karki informed that police receive around 80 to 90 cybercrime complaints daily. Last year alone, nearly 3,000 complaints related to cyberbullying and online violence were registered, while a total of 18,926 electronic crime cases were reported.
He also pointed to the growing incidents of defamation, online sexual abuse, harassment and the spread of false information through social media.
The police chief said lack of manpower, technological infrastructure and legal reforms, along with the absence of social media liaison offices, has posed additional challenges in controlling such crimes.
“Our existing laws have become outdated. There is a need to introduce a social media regulation bill and amend the Electronic Transactions Act, 2006,” he said, adding that digital awareness programmes in schools, colleges and communities should also be strengthened.
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