Rise in Police Social Media Monitoring Cells Across India

Syllabus: GS2/Governance

Context

• States across India have witnessed a steady rise in the use of Social Media Monitoring Cells (SMMCs) by state police forces to counter misinformation, maintain law and order, and pre-empt digital threats.

Key Findings, based on data collected between 2019 and 2023

• Expanding Digital Surveillance in Policing: The number of dedicated social media monitoring cells has risen from 262 as of January 1, 2020, to 365 as of January 1, 2024, a nearly 40% increase in just four years.
• States Leading in Social Media Surveillance: As of 2024, Bihar (52), Maharashtra (50), Punjab (48), West Bengal (38), and Assam (37) have the highest number of operational social media monitoring cells.
• Rapid Expansion in Conflict and Sensitive Regions:
  • Manipur: 3 in 2020 to 16 in 2024, despite facing an Internet suspension lasting nearly 140 days in 2023.
  • Assam: 1 cell in 2022 to 37 in 2024
  • West Bengal: 2 cells in 2022 to 38 in 2024
  • Punjab: 24 cells in 2022 to 48 in 2024
• Institutionalization of Monitoring Cells: Social media monitoring was often conducted informally or within cybercrime police stations before 2021.
  • However, since 2021, these units have been recognized as distinct operational entities in the DoPO reports.
• Parallel Growth in Cybercrime Infrastructure: The expansion of monitoring cells has occurred alongside the growth in cybercrime police stations, which increased from 376 in 2020 to 624 in 2024.
  • It underscores the escalating complexity of digital offenses and the necessity of specialized responses.
• Modernization of Policing Tools: The number of drones available with police forces rose from 1,010 in 2023 to 1,147 in 2024, indicating the increasing use of aerial surveillance and crowd management tools.
  • The Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) attributes the above expansion to the Modernisation of State Police Forces (MPF) Scheme, under which the central government allocates funds for upgrading technology infrastructure and capacity-building in law enforcement.

Operational Framework of SMMCs

• SMMCs generally function at the district or range level, often under the supervision of Cyber Cells or Special Branch units. Their primary objectives include:
  • Monitoring posts that may disturb public order or communal harmony.
  • Detecting cyberbullying, online fraud, and misinformation campaigns.
  • Generating ‘trend reports’ and sentiment analyses for senior officers.
  • Coordinating with social media companies for content takedown or user identification.
• Positive Outcomes of SMMCs:
  • Countering misinformation during public crises, such as COVID-19 or natural disasters.
  • Tracking online radicalization and terror propaganda.
  • Preventing mob violence incited by fake news or doctored videos.
  • Assisting investigations into cyber fraud, trafficking, and scams.
  • Some states like Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka have developed advanced monitoring setups that use AI-assisted analytics to detect online anomalies in real time.

Concerns & Related Issues

• Oversight and Privacy: SMMCs raise serious privacy and accountability questions. Such monitoring often occurs without judicial oversight or public transparency.
  • Instances have emerged where users were summoned or booked for critical posts, sometimes under ambiguous sections of the IT Act or IPC, blurring the line between legitimate monitoring and censorship.
• Persistent Workforce Shortage: India’s police forces continue to face a large manpower deficit, despite infrastructural and technological advances.
  • It presents challenges in implementing and maintaining the expanding technological infrastructure.

Way Forward: Balancing Technology with Accountability

• India needs a clear legal framework for digital policing, one that balances technological capability with democratic safeguards.
• Recommendations include:
  • Establishing independent oversight committees for SMMCs.
  • Introducing transparency reports to track data usage and content flagging.
  • Aligning police monitoring with the principles of necessity, proportionality, and legality as laid down in the Puttaswamy (2017) privacy judgment.

Source: TH