90% of cybercrimes in Uzbekistan are committed from abroad — Ministry of Internal Affairs

90% of cybercrimes in Uzbekistan are committed from abroad — Ministry of Internal Affairs

Almost every second crime in Uzbekistan is related to the use of information technologies. At the same time, 90% of cybercrimes are transboundary in nature and are committed from abroad. This was stated by the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Ramazon Ashrapov, in an address to the public on October 7.

"Behind these figures are the hard-earned funds of thousands of our compatriots, the well-being of their families, and their peace of mind. However, it must be said directly: if the fight against such crimes is conducted only by law enforcement agencies, it will not be possible to achieve the expected results," he said.

"Fraudsters mainly exploit people's gullibility, their carelessness, and insufficient digital literacy," Ramazon Ashrapov noted.

The Deputy Minister outlined the main rules of cybersecurity and urged the public to explain them to those around them, children, and elderly relatives:

do not open or download suspicious and unknown files from social networks, especially files in APK format, even if they were sent by a loved one;

do not trust calls from unfamiliar numbers from people who introduce themselves as employees of various departments and request codes and passwords;

do not trust online platforms and fake platforms that promise to multiply invested funds several times over in a short period;

do not make advance payments for online purchases until the reliability of the seller has been verified;

do not disclose anyone's bank card PIN code and the SMS code received on the phone.

The year 2026 has been declared the "Year of Combating Cybercrime" in the system of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Uzbekistan. According to the ministry, in the first half of the year, over 9,000 cybercrimes were solved in the country, and damages amounting to 120.49 billion soums were compensated to more than 13,000 citizens.

In January, the President of Uzbekistan stated that there were no tangible results in the work of the Cybercrime Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which was established three years ago.