Rashmika, brand ambassador of Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre

New Delhi: Actor Rashmika Mandanna was on Tuesday named the national brand ambassador of the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), an initiative of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India to deal with cybercrime in the country. The actor, popular for films such as “Pushpa: The Rise”, “Dear Comrade”, and “Animal”, made headlines after a deepfake video of her was widely circulated on social media earlier this year.

As someone who faced the impact of cybercrime, Mandanna said it’s time for “stricter measures to protect our online world”. “Let’s unite to build a safer cyberspace for ourselves and future generations. I want to bring awareness and protect as many of you as possible from cybercrimes as I take on the role of brand ambassador for I4C. Let me and the Government of India help you,” she wrote in an Instagram post.

The actor, who has 44.2 million followers on Instagram and 4.9 million followers on X, urged people to report cybercrimes by calling on the number 1930 or visiting cybercrime.gov.in. website.

Cyber Dost, the cyber-safety and cybersecurity awareness handle maintained by the MHA, welcomed Mandanna as the national brand ambassador of I4C.

“Excited to onboard the pan-India star @iamRashmika as I4C’s National Brand Ambassador. We are joining forces to fortify India’s digital landscape, we’ll tackle cybercrimes head-on,” read a post on X. The I4C was set up by the MHA to provide a framework and eco-system for law-enforcement agencies (LEAs) in dealing with cybercrime in a coordinated and comprehensive manner. Mandanna will next be seen in “Pushpa: The Rule”, set to hit the screens on December 6.