Cops want no privacy for customers in cyber cafes

According to the police, about 600 cyber cafe operators and real estate agents in the city attended the meeting.

Officials of the cyber cell of Pune city police crime branch told the cyber cafe operators about the precautionary measures they should follow.

One such measure, according to the police, is to make arrangements inside the cyber cafe in such a way that computer screens used by customers should be visible to the cyber cafe operators or owners. “This will make it easy for the cyber cafe operators to know what exactly a customer is doing. The customers coming to the cyber cafe should not be given privacy,” the police said in their directives that were also released to the media on Saturday.

The directives further mention, “D Anti Forensic software should not be used in cyber cafes. It is important to use I-cafe manager software.”

Police have also asked cyber cafe owners to keep a watch on the customers found indulging in “international chatting”.

Cyber cafe owners were also guided by the police on preparing membership cards for their frequent customers, which should be done after scanning the photo identity card of customers, noting down their cellphone numbers, temporary as well as permanent addresses in a well maintained register. Cyber cafe operators were also told that obtaining a licence along with “no-objection certificate (NOC)” from traffic and fire brigade was mandatory for them.

Meanwhile, the police told real estate agents that it was mandatory for them to collect the identity proof along with photocopies of documents related to the job or business of the tenants. They were also asked to get information about a tenant’s native place and details of some local persons who knew them. The agents are supposed to fill up tenant forms at the police station and furnish these information. This, according to police, will help keep a check on criminal elements who try to get house on rent with fake names. Agents were also asked to inform the police at 100 number about suspicious tenants.

The meeting was held as per the instructions of senior police officers, including the Pune police commissioner, for creating awareness about terror activities in the view of Ganesh festival.

Police inspector Dhananjay Dhumal of the anti-terrorist cell and police inspector Sanjay Tungar of cyber cell interacted with the real estate agents and cyber cafe operators during the meet.

Earlier, on Wednesday, the Pune city police conducted a similar meeting of telecom company officials, mobile shop owners, sellers and distributors of SIM cards in the city. Considering the misuse of SIM cards in crimes and terrorist activists, police told them that thumb impressions of the customers seeking SIM cards should be taken. Also, their alternate mobile phone numbers should be noted and verified before making the SIM card active.

The police had appealed that information about suspicious customers and persons submitting bogus documents for buying SIM cards should be passed on to them.