Clone website of Rohilkhand Univ raises data theft fears for 10L students

Bijnor: A clone website of Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Rohilkhand University in Uttar Pradesh was created by unidentified miscreants allegedly to illegally obtain personal data of over 10 lakh students enrolled with the university. An FIR was registered at the Baradari police station on Saturday after the fake website was detected, under BNS sections 335 (making a false document) and 336 (forgery) and section 66 of IT Act.The duplicate website carried examination schedules, semester details and course-related information, making it appear identical to the official portal. The university's website coordinator, Akhtar Hussain, said, "The university's official website is www.mjpru.ac.in. To misuse the university's reputation and create confusion among students, an unknown person created a fake clone website, www.mjpru.org.in, mimicking the official website and posting various university programmes and schemes."He added that the fake website appears to be part of a well-planned fraud. "It not only resembles the original website but is also collecting fees and other sensitive information from students, which could lead to them being defrauded. Swift and strict action against the culprits, along with blocking the website, is essential," said Hussain. So far, there have been no reports of any students being duped through the website.SHO of Baradari police station, Dhananjay Pandey, said a case was registered against an unknown person and efforts were underway to identify and trace the accused. The cyber crime cell is also assisting in the investigation, and steps are being taken to shut down the cloned website, he added.Rohilkhand University has more than 240 affiliated colleges across Bareilly, Budaun, Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur, Rampur, Amroha and Bijnor districts.