Cyber shadows deepen: Surge in bomb hoax emails sparks national alarm

A fresh wave of bomb threat emails targeting over 60 schools across Bengaluru and Delhi has triggered alarm among security agencies, raising concerns about a larger, coordinated hoax operation. 

 

While every threat so far has proved to be a false alarm, the persistent frequency and strikingly similar patterns suggest a deeper, possibly well-planned campaign that may trace back to May 2024. 

 

The digital cloak used by the perpetrators, often hiding behind anonymous, encrypted email services, has complicated investigations and caused widespread panic, leading to evacuations, police sweeps, and severe disruptions in classrooms across the country.

READ HERE | 60 schools in Bengaluru and Delhi get bomb threats via email; search, evacuations and drills continue

According to official sources, the latest round of threatening emails appears to be related to a series that began on May 1, 2024, when over 100 schools in Delhi and the National Capital Region received similar bomb hoax messages.

 

In both situations, the pattern is strikingly similar: dark web tools, virtual private networks (VPNs), and encrypted platforms were used to hide the sender's location and identity.

 

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) received a letter from the Delhi Police last year asking Interpol for assistance in tracking down the email address sawariim@mail.ru that was used to send the previous round of threatening emails. Due to the extensive use of sophisticated anonymization tools, the request for information such as the date of account creation, IP logs, and user origin was only partially successful.

 

A case was registered by the Delhi Police under sections of criminal conspiracy and criminal intimidation. With technical assistance from the Cyber Cell's IFSO (Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations) unit, the Counter Intelligence Unit is handling the probe. Although no hard proof has surfaced as of yet. 

 

In the most recent wave of threats, investigators confirm that encrypted email platforms and VPNs were once again used to evade detection. Although no link to terrorism has been discovered so far, authorities are looking into every possibility.

 

Earlier this week, a 12-year-old boy was arrested for sending fictitious bomb threat emails to Delhi's St. Stephen's College and St. Thomas School. The phone messages were reportedly sent by the boy, a private school student in Class VIII, using a Gmail account. He acknowledged during the counselling that he had randomly selected which schools to email and that he wanted them to close.

 

At the time, he was staying with his grandmother while his parents were in Bengaluru for his mother's medical treatment. The minor was released without a formal complaint after undergoing counselling.

 

Although the juvenile's behaviour seems isolated and inadvertent, there are concerns raised by the larger collection of emails that have been sent to other schools. The use of sophisticated cyber tools in those circumstances suggests a more organized and purposeful effort.

India