The Highlights:
Recent bomb threats on Indian airlines have caused mass disruption to air travel after a series of alarming incidents. The threats were targetted at both international and domestic flights. Delhi Police has upped the ante by reaching out to social media including X, now called Twitter in its earlier avatar, for assistance to identify the perpetrators of the hoax messages.
Escalating Threats and Airline Disruptions
Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport has experienced a spate of bomb threats in the last seven days for several flights that take off from this airport. The hoaxes have been causing such significant disruption that airports had to mark emergencies, reroute, and evacuate passengers. In the wake of this, an Akasa Air flight bound for Bengaluru carrying 180 passengers was made to return from Delhi following the threat of a bomb aboard the aircraft. Thankfully, no damage was found after searching the plane; the rumour turned out to be untrue.
Role of Social Media in Hoax Investigation
Delhi Police have opened a targeted cyber inquiry on these threats, and now social media is becoming a key component in tracing the source and identification of the messages. The whole inquiry depends on cooperation with websites such as X to find out everything possible about the accounts publishing these hoaxes.
Cyber experts and the police suspect that the people behind such threats are covering their identities with VPNs and the dark web. The police are collaborating with X in tracing the IP addresses of such accounts to halt all such future hoaxing attempts.
Public Safety Impact and Legal Implications
Such threats not only disturb air traffic but also create panic among the passengers as well as in the public. The authorities are taking the incidents very seriously. Legal action has been initiated against the culprits and Delhi Police have filed multiple FIRs.
For now, the authorities have begun to take demands for stricter legal proceedings imposed upon the perpetrators for ensuring the safety and security of travelers. As stated by Deputy Commissioner of Police Usha Rangnani, so far all the threats were hoaxes, but the seriousness of the situation requires immediate and strict action.
Cyber Technology Used in the Investigation
The engagement of the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) unit showcases the increased usage of cyber technology in countering modern crime. This specialized unit was tasked with dissecting the digital footprint of the hoax threats and working closely with social media sites for real-time data sharing.
Platforms such as X have had to comply and provide a site with lists of specific activities on each account, including timestamps and IP addresses used by suspected users. Some of these, however, are particularly difficult to trace using advance technology like VPNs, meaning that some of these threats are led by large-scale cyber-criminals.
More General Aviation Security Needs
This spate of hoax bomb threats is not limited to one or two flights alone. There have been numerous incidents over the past week itself, involving Indian airlines, Indigo and Air India. Those have only increased overall security concerns about the aviation industry. Social media platforms apart, the police are in touch with other law enforcement agencies in India, including the Mumbai Police, to craft a coordinated response to the threats.
The aviation authorities also recommend that the airlines scrutinize and, if appropriate, upgrade their security measures, to include passengers’ communication screened. The new added security layers will detect threats early, and airlines will not experience further disruption.
Conclusion: A Coordinated Effort for Aviation Security
With the investigation of the flight bomb threats, it could very well be said that combined efforts from Delhi Police, cyber experts, and social media might track down the men in fear. Since technology is increasingly being used both in planning and in response, technological progress must outpace the threat so perpetrated to maintain trust in both public safety and airspace.
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