Rajkot: The Gujarat Police have apprehended the mastermind behind a nationwide CCTV hacking racket, preventing hackers from carrying out a widespread conspiracy to compromise thousands of cameras across the country. The arrest was announced by Gujarat's Minister of State for Home Affairs, Harsh Sanghvi, during a statement in the Gujarat Assembly.
Sanghvi revealed that Gujarat is the first state to include cyber terrorism charges in cases involving CCTV leaks. He praised the efforts of the state government, led by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, for its swift and strategic action. Sanghvi highlighted that the state has appointed a special prosecutor to fast-track the legal proceedings, ensuring the case is heard in a fast-track court.
The case centres on a viral video showing the treatment of a female patient in a private maternity home in Rajkot. The video was part of a larger hack involving thousands of CCTV cameras across India. Sanghvi explained that, while the situation could have been dismissed by simply arresting the hospital staff, the Gujarat Police took a proactive approach, investigating deeper and uncovering a major conspiracy.
These hackers, according to Sanghvi, used Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) from countries like Atlanta, Romania, Georgia, and Japan, to conceal their identity. The group, operating through Telegram channels, hacked over 50,000 CCTV cameras in the last eight months. These cameras included feeds from corporate offices, schools, colleges, movie theatres, and personal houses. The accused operated 22 different channels, offering menus of pornographic content linked to the hacked footage.
Gujarat Police took immediate action after a viral video of the female patient's examination was noticed on February 17, 2025. A case was filed at the Cyber Crime Police Station in Ahmedabad, and investigations soon led to the Rajkot incident. Police infiltrated Telegram groups, posing as subscribers, to track down the primary sources of the illegal activities.
The hackers were involved in a wide-reaching network, exploiting weak security settings of WiFi-connected CCTV cameras, including easily guessable passwords. Sanghvi urged public representatives to spread awareness regarding the importance of securing digital surveillance systems. To prevent further incidents, Gujarat Police have also frozen the bank accounts of the accused and issued notices to social media platforms to ensure the removal of illegal content.
