.

STANDARD OPERATING
PROCEDURE – HELPLINE
OPERATIONS V1.0

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Contents
1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 4
1.1. Background ............................................................................................................................. 4
1.2. Purpose .................................................................................................................................... 4
1.3. Scope ........................................................................................................................................ 5
1.4. Prerequisite ............................................................................................................................. 5
2. Standard Operating procedures ............................................................................................. 6
2.1. Understanding Complainant’s Requirement..................................................................... 6
2.2. When complainant wants to report by “Report Anonymously” option ....................... 9
2.3. When complainant wants to report by “Report and Track” option .............................11
3. References .................................................................................................................................17
4. Annexures ..................................................................................................................................18
4.1. Annexure 1- Reporting a Websites/URL ...........................................................................18
A. How to copy and paste a URL .....................................................................................18
B. YouTube: How to report: ..............................................................................................19
4.2. Annexure 2- Reporting a Facebook post ..........................................................................20
A. Gathering information for reporting on Cybercrime reporting portal .................20
B. Reporting a Facebook Post on the Facebook itself................................................23
4.3. Annexure 3- Reporting about a Twitter Post. ..................................................................25
A. Gathering information for reporting on Cybercrime reporting portal .................25
B. Reporting a tweet on the Twitter itself ......................................................................30
4.4. Annexure 4- Reporting an Instagram post .......................................................................32
A. Gathering information for reporting on Cybercrime reporting portal .................32
B. Reporting a Post on Instagram itself. ........................................................................37
4.5. Annexure 5 – Reporting a WhatsApp post .......................................................................39
A. Gathering information for reporting on Cybercrime reporting portal .................39

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Document Control
Document Information

Owner Ministry of Home Affairs

Document Status Draft

Date Effective 18 June 2018

Document Revision History

Version Status Date Author Reviewed by Approved Change

No. by Log
1.0 Draft 18 June 2018 MHA MHA First version

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1. Introduction
1.1. Background
As per directives of Honourable Supreme Court, the States/UTs need to setup a
Helpline for guiding the distressed complainants who are trying to report online
content related to Child Pornography (CP) / Child Sexual abuse material (CSAM),
Rape and Gang Rape (RGR) – Sexually Abusive Content. A short code 155260 has
been assigned by Department of Telecommunication for the Helpline and has been
made operational for receiving CP/RGR complaints.

Officials attending the calls at the helpline are required to extend technical guidance
to the complainants so as to register their complaints on portal
https://cybercrime.gov.in .

It may kindly be noted that;

1. All States/UTs should establish a local telephone number for operating the
helpline and the same should be conveyed to the Ministry of Home Affairs for
appropriate routing of call to such number.
2. The helpline should be set up at a convenient place preferably co-located in
nodal cyber cell.
3. The official attending the calls at the helpline should encourage the complainant
for reporting their complaints on the portal by themselves.
4. It is preferable to have an official attending the calls at the helpline having fluency
in the native language as well as English as their second language.
5. The helpline should be available 24x7 for 365 days.

1.2. Purpose
The purpose of this Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) document is to describe the
procedure that needs to be followed by the officials attending the calls at the helpline
for answering queries or for guiding complainants on registering complaints on the
https://cybercrime.gov.in portal.

Only Child Pornography (CP)-Child Sexual abuse material (CSAM), Rape and
Gang Rape (RGR) – Sexually Abusive Content and Obscene Content related
complaints can be reported on the portal

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1.3. Scope
This SOP is applicable to all States/UTs officials attending the calls at the helpline for
answering queries related to the Cybercrime Reporting Portal and for providing
guidance in reporting complaints on the Cybercrime Reporting Portal.

1.4. Prerequisite
Any existing call-centre setup (with basic infrastructure like computer systems, internet
connectivity, and telephone system) or any new set-up with similar facilities can be
used to facilitate the complainants in reporting the cyber-crimes related to Child
Pornography (CP) - Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), Rape/Gang Rape-Sexually
Abusive Content (RGR).

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2. Standard Operating procedures
2.1. Understanding Complainant’s Requirement
The helpline official has to follow the procedures explained below:
Step 1. Understand the requirements of the complainant:
What Complainant wants to
report/ know
Complainant wants to report
a cybercrime
Complainant wants to report
a cybercrime related to CP-
CSAM, RGR or Obscene
content.
A. Complainant wants to know
what are information is
required to report a
cybercrime related to CP-
CSAM, RGR or Obscene
content.
What Official has to do
Enquire to find out if the cybercrime which
complainant wants to report falls under the
category of Child Pornograpphy (CP) - Child
Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), Rape/Gang
Rape-Sexually Abusive Content (RGR) or
Obscecne content.
If cybercrime is related to CP/RGR, inform the
complainant that s/he can report it on the
cybercrime.gov.in portal.
Follow procedure from Step 2.
Inform the complainant that following information
are mandatory
For Anonymous reporting:
- Category of Crime (Is it CP or CSAM or
RGR)
- State
- Either Website URL or the obscene
content itself (photograph, video which is
being reported)
For Report and Track reporting (User will
reveal his/her identity):
- Name of the person who is reporting the
cyber-crime
- Mobile Number
- Category of Crime
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Any other type of cybercrime
B. General information about
cybercrime.gov.in portal
C. Information about other
government services
- Date of Incident*
- Incident Description
- Country and state
- Preservation of evidence (evidence is to
be preserved so that same could be
presented to investigating officer)
Inform the complainant to contact their nearest
cyber cell police station or police station
depending upon his/her convenience.
Inform the complainant about availability of FAQ,
Online Safety Tips, User manuals for reporting
complaint on cybercrime.gov.in portal
Inform the complainant about the fact that this
helpline is for providing information and
guidance for reporting cybercrimes on
cybercrime.gov.in only and to refer to
https://www.india.gov.in/ for any central
government scheme/information or to contact
local administration for any other assistance
they may require.

Step 2. If the complainant wants to report CP-CSAM, RGR or Obscene content, then
inform complainant that:

a) S/he can report CP-CSAM, RGR related crime on cybercrime.gov.in

portal. Further, complainant may be informed about the following two
modes of reporting a complaint on this portal:
i) Report Anonymously Mode:
ü Allows complainant to report content related to Child Pornography
(CP) - Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) or Rape/Gang Rape
(RGR) without revealing his/her identity
ü Complainant will not be receiving a complaint registration number

ü Status of a complaint reported using “Report Anonymously” mode

can not be tracked by the complainant

ii) Report and Track Mode:

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 ü Allows complainant to report and track the stutus of his/her
compliant. Complainant will be informed on his/her mobile number
about following:

o Compliant has been accepted or not by the concerned law

enforcement officials.

o In case an FIR is registered by the concerned law enforcement

officials, complainant will be informed about it on his/her mobile
number.

ü Complainant will be receiving a complaint registration number on

his/her mobile number through SMS and on through e-mail as well
(provided email address was provided).

ü Status of a complaint reported using “Report and Track” can be

seen by logging into the “Track & Report” section and clicking on
the ‘Check Status’ tab.

b) Inform the complainant about the feeback/report mechanism available

on social media platforms to report objectional content. Refer below
table for specific cases.

Source Required Information Reference (gathering

Website/URL ü URL for website where
obscene content is
available/hosted
Social media ü Detail of the individual or
website or app group or community
profile where obscene
content is
available/hosted
information and available
reporting mechanism)
Copying URL: Annexure 4.1 A
Reporting for content
Youtube: Annexure 4.1 B
Facebook: Annexure 4.2
Twitter: Annexure 4.3
Instagram: Annexure 4.4
WhatsApp: Annexure 4.5

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2.2. When complainant wants to report by “Report Anonymously”
option

Following steps should be communicated to the complainant:

1. Request the complainant to open a web browser and request to type the URL
https://www.cybercrime.gov.in in the address bar. Once page is loaded, request
complainant to select “Report Anonymously” option.

2. Category of Crime: Request the complainant to select between the available

options “Child Poronograpphy (CP) - Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM)”
and “Rape/Gang Rape-Sexually Abuse Content (RGR)” basis type of content
being reported.

3. Suspect Details: Request the complainant to enter the suspect details if

information is available. Following information can be provided:
i. Name of the suspect
ii. Any other details: Source of information like username, E-mail ID etc. from
which the CP/RGR content was received/ shared

4. Crime/Incident Details: Request the complainant to the enter the following details
i. Date of incident - when the content was received/found

ii. Time of incident – time of the day when content was received/found

iii. State (Mandatory field) – Complainant’s state.

iv. Select District – If known

v. Select Police station – If known

vi. Other information - any other information about the crime, if available that may
help in the investigation

vii. Website/url: (If complainant has a URL to be reported, else skip this)
a) Complainant has to enter the URL of the website or social media profile
where the content is hosted or available in the “Website/URL” field.

→ Complainant can enter the URL of the website or social media

profile where the content is hosted or available.

→ Official has to guide the complainant in such way that the

complainant is able report the complete URL

→ For guidance on copy and paste of URL, official may inform

complainant to click on the “Help” option available next to the
add button for URL

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Note: For selecting the entire URL which is to be reported, request complainant to right click in
the address bar/field and then to select the option “Select All”.

b) After the URL has been copied, request the complainant to right click
inside the “Website/URL” field and to click on the paste option.

c) Finally complainant has to click on the “Add” button to add the URL in
the complaint

5. Uploading Evidences: Request complainant to click on “Choose File” button

given on the right corner of “Upload Evidence(s)” field. Complainant has to click
on “Add” button if multiple evidences has to be uploaded.
ü Complainant can upload evidences such as videos or contents which are in
doc, ppt or pdf formats
ü In case of large files, official should advice the complainant to add website
URL instead of uploading large video files. Inform the complainant that total
file size limit for uploaded evidences is 5 MB

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 6. Captcha and Submit: Helpline official has to guide the complainant to enter the
“Captcha” before clicking on “Submit”.

Official may advice the complainant

to refresh the captcha if complainant
is not able to read it.

2.3. When complainant wants to report by “Report and Track”

option

Following steps should be communicated to the complainant

Step 1. Request the complainant to open a web browser and to type the URL
https://cybercrime.gov.in in the address bar. Request to select “Report
and Track” option on the homepage.

Step 2. Authenticating the complainant:

i. Request the complainant to enter his Name and his mobile number
(Indian mobile only) before clicking on “Send OTP”.

ii. Request complainant to enter the received OTP in the OTP field and the
Captcha before clicking on “Submit” button.

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Step 3. Crime / Incident Details: Official has to guide the complainant to fill the
fields under “Crime / Incident Details“

i. “Category of Crime”: Depending upon the type of content being

reported, request the complainant to select among the following
available options:

a) Child Pornography (CP) - Child Sexual Abuse Material

(CSAM)
b) Rape/Gang Rape-Sexually Abuse Content (RGR)
c) Obscene Online Content

ii. Date of Incident (Mandatory) - when content was received or found.

iii. Time of incident - time of the day when content was received or
found.

iv. Social Media Type on which the incident happened – Official has
to guide the complainant to select the social media platform on which
content was received/is available from the drop down list.
Complainant can select “Other” if the name of social media is not
listed

v. Social Media Username/ ID/ URL – Request the complainant to

mention the username/ ID/ URL of social media platform (like
Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, YouTube etc.) where content is
present.
In case of WhatsApp, please mention the mobile number from which
content was received

vi. E-mail address – Request the complainant to mention the e-mail

address from which content was received

a) Website/URL where the content was found: Complainant can

enter the URL of the website or social media profile where the
content is hosted or available in the “Website/URL where the
content was found” field.

→ Official has to guide the complainant in such way that the

complainant is to able report the complete URL

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 → For guidance on copy and paste of URL, official may inform
complainant to click on the “Help” option available next to
the add button for URL

Note: For selecting the entire URL which is to be reported, request complainant to right click in
the address bar/field and then select the option “Select All”.

b) After the URL has been copied, request the complainant to right
click inside the “Website/URL where the content was found”
field and to select the paste option.

c) Finally request complainant to click on the “Add” button to add

the URL in the complaint.

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Step 4. Enter the Suspect details: Official has to guide the complainant to enter
the following details about the suspect if information is available:

i. Suspect name (If known)

ii. Correspondence address of suspect like state, district, colony, street

name etc. so that it could help the police authorities in investigation.

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Step 5. Enter the Complainant details: Request the complainant to fill in his/her
details:

i. Name (Mandatory) – As mentioned during registration.

ii. Mobile Number will be filled automatically (as mentioned during
registration)
iii. E-mail ID
iv. Relationship with the victim
v. Select Country, State (Mandatory) and District
vi. Select Police station and type Pin Code

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Step 6. Upload the Evidence: If complainant has evidences which were
downloaded from websites/Messaging apps or received through e-mail,
then helpline official should guide the complainant to upload the evidence.

i. Official has to guide the complainant to click on “Choose File” button in

the “Upload Evidence(s)” field to select the file to be uploaded.
Complainant has to click on “Add” button if multiple evidences has to be
uploaded

ii. Complainant can upload evidences such as images, videos or content

which is available in doc, ppt or pdf formats. In case of large files advice
the complainant to add website URL instead of uploading large video
files.

Step 7. Submit the complaint: Request the complainant to submit the complaint
by clicking on “Submit” button.

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3. References
Information given on the following website has been considered in the preparation of this
document:

· Cybercrime reporting portal – https://cybercrime.gov.in

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4. Annexures

4.1. Annexure 1- Reporting a Websites/URL

Following steps should be informed to the complainant:

A. How to copy and paste a URL

Step 1. Open the website where the content is present. Go to address bar

Step 2. Select the complete URL in the address bar by right clicking on the
address bar and selecting “Select all” option

Step 3. Right click on the mouse and select “copy” or use “CTRL + c” key for
copying.

Step 4. In case of Report Anonymously

Open the “Report Anonymously” page and paste the copied URL either
by right clicking on the mouse or by selecting the “paste” option or by
using “CTRL + P” key on the keyboard.

Click on the “Add” button to add the copied URL.

Step 5. In case of Report and Track

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 Open the “Report and Track “page and paste the copied URL either by
right clicking on the mouse and selecting the paste option or by using
“CTRL + p” key in the “Website/ URL where the content was found” field.

B. YouTube: How to report:

Request the complainant to click on the three dots present at the

bottom of the post to report the content.

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 Click on the three dots present at the bottom
of the post to report the content

4.2. Annexure 2- Reporting a Facebook post

A. Gathering information for reporting on Cybercrime reporting

portal

Following steps should be informed to the complainant:

Step 1. Capturing Screenshot of the post

Helpline official has to guide the complainant to take screenshot of the Post
which has the content to be reported, so that it can be uploaded as
attachment in the complaint.

Facebook Mobile App:

Taking Screenshot: When post is being accessed on mobile app,

then official has to request the complainant to open the post which
is to be reported and capture the screen by using built-in
smartphone feature or if the complainant already has any 3rd party
screen capturing tool installed on the smart phone.

Facebook on desktop’s internet browser

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If the complainant is viewing the post on an internet browser, then guide
him/her in following way:
i. Taking screenshot: Request the complainant to open the post in a
browser and take a screenshot by pressing “PrintScrn” key on the
keyboard.
ii. Open Paint application: Request the complaint to open Paint
Application

Paint App on Windows 7: Request complainant to open the Start Menu,

and click on All Programs, double click on Accessories, and double click on
Paint.
Once the Paint application is open, request the complainant to click on
“Paste” button on top left corner or press “Ctrl + V” on the key to paste the
screenshot

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 For Saving Screenshot: Click on “file” > “Save as” > “JPEG picture”

Step 2. Capturing the URL of the post

Helpline official has to guide the complainant to save the URL of the post
which has the content to be reported

Facebook mobile App:

i. Request the complainant to open the Facebook post which has the
objectionable content and click/tap option “…” in the upper right
corner of the post in question
From the pop up screen, request complainant to select or press the
“Copy link” to copy post URL and paste the link/URL in a notepad for
later reference.
Facebook on Desktop browser:

i. Request the complainant to open the post which has the objectionable
content
ii. Request the complainant to Right click on content.
iii. Request to select the “Copy the URL” option from the pop-up screen
iv. Now paste the copied link/URL in a notepad for later reference

Step 3. Capturing details of Facebook Account which complainant wants to report

i. Request the complainant to note down an account's unique ID or User

ID by going into the account and selecting “About” option and update
it in the “Incident Description” field while reporting the incident.
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 B. Reporting a Facebook Post on the Facebook itself.

Following steps should be communicated to the complainant:

1) Request complainant to navigate to the post you would like to report on
facebook.com or on App and click/tap option “…” near the post in question.

2) Request complainant to select the “Give feedback on this post” option

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3) Request complainant to select feedback category from the list which
appropriately describe the content.

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4) Request complainant to click on “send” button to submit the feedback.

4.3. Annexure 3- Reporting about a Twitter Post.

Following steps should be communicated to the complainant:

A. Gathering information for reporting on Cybercrime reporting

portal

Step 1. Capturing Screenshot of the Tweet

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Helpline official has to guide the complainant to take screenshot of the
Tweet which has the content to be reported, so that it can be uploaded as
attachment in the complaint.

Twitter Mobile App:

Taking Screenshot: When tweet is being accessed on mobile app,

then official has to request the complainant to open the tweet which is
to be reported and capture the screen by using built-in smartphone
feature or if the complainant already has any 3rd party screen capture
installed on the smart phone.

Twitter on desktop internet browser: If the complainant is viewing the

tweet on an internet browser, then guide him/her in following way:
i. Taking screenshot: Open the tweet in a browser and take a screenshot
by pressing “PrintScrn” key on the keyboard.

ii. Open Paint application: Request the complaint to open Paint

Application

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Paint App on Windows 7: Open the Start Menu, and click on All
Programs, double click on Accessories, and double click on Paint.

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Once the Paint application is open, request the complainant to click on
“Paste” button on top left corner or press “Ctrl + V” on the key to paste the
screenshot

For Saving Screenshot: Click on “file” > “Save as” > “JPEG picture”

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Step 2. Capturing the URL of the tweet

Helpline official has to guide the complainant to save the URL of the Tweet
which has the content to be reported

Twitter Mobile App:

i. Request the complainant to open the tweet which has the content
ii. Request to click on the down arrow on top right corner of the tweet.
iii. From the pop up screen, he/she has to select or press the “Copy link to
Tweet” to copy tweet’s URL and paste the link/URL in a notepad for
later reference.

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 Twitter on Desktop browser:

i. Request the complainant to open the tweet which has the content
ii. Click on the down arrow on top right corner of the tweet.
iii. From the pop up screen, click on “Copy link to Tweet” to copy tweet’s
URL and paste the link/URL in a notepad for later reference

Step 3. Capturing details about the Twitter Handle

Request the complainant to note down the account's unique ID or User

ID and update it in the “Incident Description” field while reporting the
incident.

B. Reporting a tweet on the Twitter itself

Complainant also has the option of reporting content to the Twitter. Official may
guide the complainant if complainant is interested in reporting content to Twitter as
well.
Official may guide the complainant by following below given steps:
Step 1. Request the complainant to navigate to the Tweet that is to be reported
on twitter.com or on mobile App.
Step 2. Request to Click/Tap on the down button present at the right most corner
of the tweet.

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Step 3. Request to select “Report” and then the appropriate option as per the
content which is being reported

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4.4. Annexure 4- Reporting an Instagram post

A. Gathering information for reporting on Cybercrime reporting

portal

Step 1. Capturing Screenshot of the post

Helpline official has to guide the complainant to take screenshot of the Post
which has the content to be reported, so that it can be uploaded as
attachment in the complaint.

Instagram Mobile App:

i. Taking Screenshot: When post is being accessed on mobile app,

then official has to request the complainant to open the post which
is to be reported and capture the screen by using built-in
smartphone feature or if the complainant already has any 3rd party
screen capture installed on the smart phone.

Instagram on desktop’s internet browser:

If the complainant is viewing the post on Desktop, then guide him/her in
following way:
i. Taking screenshot: Request to open the tweet in a browser and
take a screenshot by pressing “PrintScrn” key on the keyboard.

ii. Open Paint application: Request the complaint to open Paint

Application

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 Paint App on Windows 7: Request to open the Start Menu, and click on
All Programs, double click on Accessories, and double click on Paint.
Once the Paint application is open, request the complainant to click on
“Paste” button on top left corner or press “Ctrl + V” on the key to paste the
screenshot

For Saving Screenshot: Click on “file” > “Save as” > “JPEG picture”

Step 2. Capturing the URL of the post

Helpline official has to guide the complainant to save the URL of the post
which has the content to be reported
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Instagram mobile App:

i. Request the complainant to open the Instagram which has the

objectionable content

ii. Request the complainant to click on the three dots present in the
upper right most corner of the post.

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iii. From the pop up screen, he/she has to select or press the “Copy link”
to copy post URL and paste the link/URL in a notepad for later
reference.

iv. Request the complainant to copy post’s URL and paste the link/URL
in a notepad for later reference.

Instagram on Desktop browser:

I. Request the complainant to open the post which has the objectionable
content
ii. Request the complainant to click on the three dots present on the top
right corner of the post.

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 Click on the …
option

iii. From the pop up screen, click on “Go to Post

iv. Now copy the post’s URL and paste the link/URL in a notepad for later
reference

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 B. Reporting a Post on Instagram itself.

The complainant should be informed following:

1) Request the complainant to navigate to the post you would like to report on
Instragram.com or on App.

2) Request complainant to click on the three dots present at the lower right corner
of the post.

Click on the …
option

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3) Request complainant to select the “Report Inappropriate” option

Click on the “Report Inappropriate”

4) Request complainant to select “Nudity or pornography” if the post has CP/RGR

content

Click on the “Nudity or

Pornography”

5) Request complainant to click on “submit” button to finally report the post.

Click on the “submit”

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4.5. Annexure 5 – Reporting a WhatsApp post

A. Gathering information for reporting on Cybercrime reporting

portal

Step 1. Capturing Screenshot of the post

Helpline official has to guide the complainant to take screenshot of the chat
which shows the content being received from sender, so that it can be
uploaded as attachment in the complaint.

i. Taking Screenshot Smartphone: Request the complainant to

open the WhatsApp chat where he/she received the content and
capture the screen showing the sender’s name/mobile number.

ii. WhatsApp on desktop’s internet browser: If the complainant is

viewing the post on a desktop, then guide him/her in following way:
Taking screenshot: Request to open the post in a browser and
take a screenshot by pressing “PrintScrn” key on the keyboard.

Saving screenshot using Paint application: Request the

complaint to open Paint Application

Paint App on Windows 7: Open the Start Menu, and click on All
Programs, double click on Accessories, and double click on Paint.
Once the Paint application is open, request the complainant to click on
“Paste” button on top left corner or press “Ctrl + V” on the key to paste the
screenshot

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For Saving Screenshot: Click on “file” > “Save as” > “JPEG picture”

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