New Delhi, Oct. 16 -- In November 2023, a deepfake video emerged in which a woman dressed in black workout onesie was seen inside an elevator. Her face was edited using artificial intelligence (AI) to resemble actor Rashmika Mandanna. In February this year, a Bengaluru based woman was cheated of Rs.3.75 crore after she was lured by an AI YouTube video that showed spiritual leader Sadhguru endorsing a trading platform. Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said she has seen several deepfake videos of her being circulated online. These are among a large number of incidents being reported every year in which cyber criminals are misusing AI. Concerned over the trend, the Centre has proposed to create district-level task forces in every state and Union territory, which will exclusively deal with the growing challenges of cyber frauds and misuse of AI, people familiar with the development said. The district-level task force, a ministry of home affairs (MHA) official said, will comprise police officers who are experts in handling cybercrimes, and other officials with expertise in AI and cyber security and other stakeholders. "These task forces will serve as an institutional mechanism for timely case coordination, public education, infrastructure strengthening, and digital policy enforcement at the district level," the official said, requesting anonymity. The Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C), which comes under the MHA, currently facilitates real-time information sharing and coordinated investigations, enabling action against cybercriminal networks, including those engaged in financial frauds and other organised cyber offences. So far, I4C has proactively blocked 3,962 Skype IDs and 83,668 WhatsApp accounts linked to cyber frauds. "But we need states/UTs to act against cybercrimes at their level and formation of these district level task forces would be the first step," a second official said....