IndiaAI Mission: IT ministry launches hackathon to combat cyber crime with AI

Final results of the hackathon will be announced in January 2025

Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), as part of its Rs 10,738-crore IndiaAI initiative, along with the Ministry of Home Affairs, is looking for artificial intelligence solutions that can help combat cyber crime.

The Centre is specifically looking for natural language processing (NLP) models that can help citizens in filing cybercrime reports on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP), and models that will help categorise victim complaints based on type of fraud and other relevant parameters.

This is part of a hackathon that IndiaAI launched last week with the aim of leveraging AI to improve cybersecurity and address cyber fraud and crimes.

"With approximately 6,000 cases reported daily through the NCRP, this initiative seeks to develop robust AI-driven solutions capable of managing and mitigating these threats," the ministry said. "The hackathon provides a platform for participants to design and implement sophisticated AI models that can enhance the effectiveness of cybersecurity measures and combat the growing sophistication of cybercrime."

The government is inviting applications from institutions such as IITs, NITs and other establishments for the event.

In the first stage of  the competition, participants, either as individuals or teams, will work on developing the NLP models. The development will take place virtually over a 20-day period. In the second stage, top 20 teams will be selected for an in-person event in New Delhi. They will further refine their models using datasets from the NCRP to assist citizens in filing accurate cybercrime reports. The best three teams will advance to the final stage. In the final stage, the finalists will pilot their solutions in a real-world environment. The winning team will be awarded Rs 25 lakh, along with a contract to deploy their solution for the Centre for four years.

The hackathon kicked off on October 17 with online submissions closing on November 7. The second round will be held on December 18, and the winner will be announced in January 2025.

Earlier, under the IndiaAI Mission, the ministry also launched a competition to look for artificial intelligence (AI) solutions in the areas of healthcare, agriculture, climate change, and for persons with specific learning disabilities.

The ministry invited applications from interested candidates, and the selected entity will receive a contract to deploy their solution for use by Centre and associated entities for a period of four years and will also be given up to Rs 1 crore.