WhatsApp data can be retrieved
Had the policy became a law, cops could have saved a lot of time in such cases
Hyderabad: Cyber crime cops in the city and the state CID were pleased with the Centre’s proposed encryption policy. But their happiness lasted less than 24 hours after the Centre withdrew the proposal.
Cyber crime officials said that though the proposed draft was highly regressive from the citizens’ perspective, their job would have been easier if the government had not taken a U-turn on the matter. However, they said that even if contents on WhatsApp and Facebook are deleted, they can be recovered using specific tools.
“From the perspective of an investigative officer, if the policy had materialised, it would have been helpful in the investigation process. However, we do not have a problem that the policy is withdrawn, because we have our own methods to recover deleted data,” said a senior cyber crime official from Central Crime Station Hyderabad.
In most cases, chat history and uploaded content are vital evidences for police to take a case to the trial stage. When the accused deletes his or her online content, it takes the police weeks to recover it.
Had the policy became a law, cops could have saved a lot of time in such cases. “However, we also agree that it’s too regressive and ridiculous to ask people not to delete data from their equipment,” said a senior cyber crime police official. Meanwhile, inside sources said that the city crime police has already placed an order for an advanced software, worth about Rs 18 lakh, that can help retrieve deleted chats.