70 Bomb Threats, Passengers and Airlines Deeply Troubled

Numerous fake bomb hoaxes, over 70, disrupted many domestic and international flights this week. Delhi police intensified their efforts to track down the individuals behind the spate of fake bomb threats.

The police swung into action specifically after the registration of an FIR, concerning a bomb threat received by Bengaluru-bound Akasa Air flight carrying 180 passengers. It may be recalled that several such incidents were reported from the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport throughout the month.

The police, have decided to probe into the incidents, taking assistance from social media platforms like X. The police want to identify accounts responsible for posting the threatening messages.

Police doubt if the perpetrators may have used a Virtual Private Network (VPN) or dark web browser to create multiple accounts, which were subsequently used to issue the threats. A dedicated team, including the cyber cell of Delhi Police and the Intelligence Fusion & Strategic Operations (IFSO) unit, has been formed to investigate into the threat cases.

Revealing the same, a police officer stated: “It is suspected that the handler used VPN or dark web browsers to set up the accounts on X and then posted messages from multiple accounts. To trace the IP addresses, we have formally requested assistance from the social media platform.”

This week alone, several flights, both domestic and international, have received bomb threats. However, a majority of them have proven to be unfounded.

Delving deep into the threats, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) held a meeting with airline CEOs and representatives to address the growing crisis.

On Saturday, the situation escalated when more than 30 flights from various Indian airlines reported bomb threats, which led to heightening security measures and disruption in passenger and airport staff activity.

The airlines affected due to threats included Air India, Vistara, IndiGo, Akasa Air, SpiceJet, Star Air, and Alliance Air. With so many flights receiving threats, passengers and airport staff faced significant inconvenience. The planes facing the threat were moved to isolation bays, to comply with security protocols.

In the wake of the ongoing crisis, the civil aviation ministry is planning to implement strict measures aimed at preventing future hoax bomb threats against airlines. One of the measures proposed includes preparing a no-fly list and placing identified perpetrators on the list to ensure they cannot board flights in the future.

In this background, the recent wave of bomb threats highlights the need for enhanced security measures and cooperation between law enforcement and social media platforms.