Commissioner of Police Ahmed Mohamed revealed yesterday that the rate of cyber crimes has doubled within the year.
In a statement released on occasion of Cyber Security Awareness Month, the Police Commissioner stated that 85 percent of the Maldives population are actively using the internet and digital devices, which has brought immense convenience in everyday lives.
However, the technology also brings with it an increased risk of facing cyber crimes for the public, businesses, and State entities, he warned.
The Commissioner said that cyber crimes reported within the first six months of 2026 have doubled in number compared to the same period last year. 86 percent of these cases involve social media use, he added.
Police Commissioner Ahmed Mohamed warned that offenders are increasing using artificial intelligence to produce fake photos, videos, audios and messages to deceive the general public and make them prey to dangerous and harmful cyber crimes. This poses a far more serious risk than just a threat to the personal and financial security of the public, he said.
"This directly relates to the trust and confidence in institutions, the national economy and national security as a whole," the Commissioner's statement reads.
"As government services, financial transactions, businesses and our personal lives are becoming more and more digitalized, the opportunities to trap the public as victims in crimes in the cyber space is also increasing. We can only reap the true benefits of development and modern technology when every individual and every institution becomes aware and vigilant towards digital security."
The Commissioner noted that in many cyber crime cases reported to the police, elements of lack of awareness and negligence towards upholding security have been observed.
Digital users become more susceptible to falling victim to cyber crimes through actions such as clicking unverified links, sharing OTP or personal details with unverified persons, and making payments to unverified sources.
Commissioner Ahmed Mohamed assured that the Maldives Police Service will continue to acquire new technological resources and work towards increasing technical capacity to ensure improved response to and prevention of cyber crimes.
