Cybercrime in Pakistan: Why the Interior Secretary Calls It “The Biggest Challenge of the Present Era”

Most people in Pakistan know someone who’s gotten a scam call. A fake bank agent, a “job offer” that asks for money upfront, a WhatsApp message from a “relative” in trouble. It’s become that common. So when Interior Secretary Ahmad Raza Sarwar stood at the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) headquarters in Islamabad and called cybercrime the biggest challenge of our time, it wasn’t exactly a shock to anyone who’s been paying attention. What matters now is what he actually promised, and what it means for the rest of us.

What Was Actually Said

Sarwar visited NCCIA headquarters where Director General Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi walked him through the agency’s recent performance. He pointed to some real wins, particularly crackdowns on illegal call centres and fraud networks running online scams. In response, the secretary said the interior ministry would give NCCIA more resources, better technology, and more staff. He was direct about why: the agency is central to protecting people from fraud, harassment, and financial crime, and that protection needs to be fast and transparent, not stuck in bureaucracy.

Why This Actually Affects You

Here’s the thing about Pakistan’s digital landscape: it’s mobile-first, but not always digitally literate. A huge number of people do their banking, shopping, and communicating through a phone, yet plenty of them have never had anyone explain what a phishing link looks like. That gap is exactly what scammers exploit. Government figures shared with the National Assembly showed NCCIA logged over 700,000 complaints between 2021 and 2025. Only a small fraction of those ever led to a conviction. That gap between what people report and what gets punished is a big part of why this is being called a national-level problem now, not just an IT issue.

Where the NCCIA Comes In

The NCCIA took over from the FIA’s old Cybercrime Wing and now operates under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA). It’s the one handling complaints about fraud, harassment, blackmail, and fake websites. So if something happens to you online, the FIA isn’t who you call anymore, it’s the NCCIA.

What You Can Actually Do About It

• Don’t share your OTP, CNIC number, or bank PIN with anyone, even if they claim to be from your bank
• Before responding to a “job offer” or “loan approval,” check the company directly through its official website
• Turn on two-factor authentication for mobile banking and social apps
• If something feels off, report it to NCCIA through their helpline rather than ignoring it
• Be suspicious of links from unknown numbers, especially ones that create urgency (“your account will be blocked”)

The Reality on the Ground

In smaller towns, a lot of people still lean on a family member or a local shopkeeper for help with mobile banking. That dependency is exactly what scammers count on, often pretending to be bank staff or government officials to seem legitimate. Better equipment for NCCIA is good, but awareness campaigns in Urdu and regional languages probably matter just as much.

Conclusion

Calling cybercrime the biggest challenge of the era isn’t just a dramatic line from a government official, it reflects something a lot of Pakistanis already sense from experience. But policy promises only go so far. The real defence is personal: think twice before clicking, verify before trusting, and report instead of staying quiet. Because in the end, the fight against cybercrime starts with the choices made on your own phone.

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