An initiative has been taken to form an independent “Cyber Police Unit” for Bangladesh Police to tackle cybercrime. Led by an Additional Inspector General of Police (Additional IGP), the unit will initially commence operations using existing police manpower and equipment. A full organizational structure will be developed subsequently based on operational needs.
This decision was conveyed in a letter sent to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) on September 21 from the Police-3 branch of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Signed by Deputy Secretary Tanveer-Al-Naseef, the letter granted policy approval to establish a specialized and independent Cyber Police Unit within the organizational framework of Bangladesh Police.
The letter stated that policy approval has been granted to launch the Cyber Police Unit’s operations under an Additional IGP using current police personnel and equipment. However, the complete organizational structure, number of new sanctioned posts, vehicles, and other logistics for the unit are yet to be finalized.
Police headquarters has been instructed to send a detailed proposal—including the creation of required posts and inclusion of vehicles in the Table of Organization and Equipment (TO&E)—to the Ministry of Home Affairs within three working days.
Currently, cybercrime investigations, digital evidence collection and analysis, and digital forensics operations are conducted across various units of the police. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the Cyber Unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), and other relevant wings carry out these tasks separately. The new unit aims to bring these capabilities under a permanent, integrated framework.
A source from Police Headquarters noted that with the rise of cybercrime in the country, the nature of crime has evolved. Trained police personnel are required to identify and control cybercriminals; hence, there are plans to pool cyber-expert police officers serving across different units into the new entity.
Currently, the CID houses the Cyber Police Center and Forensic Division, alongside running training programs for digital investigations and forensics. The CID’s organizational structure already includes a DIG (Cyber Police Center) post.
Additionally, the DMP’s Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit includes officers specializing in cybercrime. Following the formation of the new unit, the duties, jurisdiction, and manpower of these existing units may undergo restructuring.
However, the ministry’s September 21 letter did not provide detailed guidelines in this regard. Consequently, issues such as which types of cases the new unit will investigate, its functional relationship with CID and DMP, and the role of local police stations or district police are expected to be clarified in the forthcoming organizational proposal.
Ministry of Home Affairs Deputy Secretary Tanveer-Al-Naseef informed the media that the process of forming the police cyber unit is moving forward swiftly. Plans are in place to initiate operations using current personnel and infrastructure.
