New Delhi: The Delhi Police has approached various social media platforms including X to get information on accounts posting fake bomb threats that led to disruptions of various flights in recent times. According to officials, at least 70 bomb threats on various flights have been reported in the last six days.
The probe has been intensified after the police registered an FIR in connection with the bomb threat to Bengaluru-bound Akasa Air flight. Authorities have also launched probes in similar other cases related to bomb threats at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in recent days.
A police team was formed to look into recent threats
According to officials, the police have formed a team to look into recent bomb threats. Apart from the cyber cell of the Delhi Police, Intelligence Fusion & Strategic Operations (IFSO) have also joined the probe. Police suspect that the Virtual Private Network (VPN) or dark web browser might have been used by the perpetrator to set up different accounts and post threatening messages.
For this reason, the police have contacted various social media platforms to suspend the handles that allegedly posted threatening messages and remove them. Speaking to news agency PTI, a police officer said they have written to social media platforms to get the IP addresses.
70 flights received bomb threats this week
Since the beginning of this week, over 70 flights reportedly received bomb threats, most of which reportedly turned fake. On Saturday alone, as many as 30 flights received bomb threats leading to an increase in alertness among security agencies, causing disruptions for passengers. Among the flights that have been affected include Vistara, Air India, Akasa Air, IndiGo, SpiceJet, Star Air, and Alliance Air. In the meantime, the government is looking to set up strict norms to prevent hoax bomb threats to airlines, which include putting the perpetrators in the no-fly list.
