Your bank app pings at midnight. Someone used your card on a site you never visited. Or a stranger is posting your photos on a fake account. Or a WhatsApp number is threatening to leak your pictures unless you pay.
You want to report it. You search for the FIA cybercrime complaint process in Pakistan. Here is what you actually need to know, and the real steps to file.
Who handles cybercrime complaints in Pakistan now?
The FIA no longer handles cybercrime complaints. The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) does.
The Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Act 2025, gazetted on 29 January 2025, set up the NCCIA under section 29 of PECA 2016. The same law says the FIA Cyber Crime Wing ceased to exist, and its staff, cases and inquiries moved to the NCCIA.
So when people say "file an FIA cybercrime complaint", the official route today is the NCCIA. Use the NCCIA complaint portal, not the old FIA one.
What counts as a cybercrime?
The law is the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016, usually called PECA. It covers more than most people think. These are the offences people complain about most:
- Electronic fraud (section 14). This covers most online scams: fake investment schemes, fake online stores, phishing links, mobile wallet fraud. Punishment can be up to 2 years or a fine up to Rs 10 million, or both.
- Unauthorized use of your identity (section 16). Someone using your CNIC number, photo or name online without permission, including opening a fake account in your name. Up to 3 years or a fine up to Rs 5 million, or both.
- Offences against modesty (section 21). Sharing intimate images without consent, threatening to leak private photos, blackmail with sexual content. Up to 5 years or a fine up to Rs 5 million, or both. If the victim is a minor, up to 7 years.
- Cyberstalking (section 24). Repeated unwanted messages, tracking someone online, using fake accounts to keep contacting a person. Up to 3 years or a fine up to Rs 1 million, or both.
- Electronic forgery (section 13). Making or using a fake electronic document, like a doctored screenshot or a fabricated bank statement. Up to 3 years or a fine up to Rs 250,000, or both.
- Offences against dignity (section 20). Publishing false information online that harms a person's reputation or privacy. Up to 3 years or a fine up to Rs 1 million, or both.
These are maximum punishments. The court decides the actual sentence on the facts of each case.
How to file your complaint, step by step
You can report online, by phone, or in person. All three routes are official.
Step 1: Save your evidence first. Take screenshots that show the sender's username, the date and time, and the full message or post. For financial fraud, keep the transaction ID and the account details of the receiver. Do not delete conversations and do not edit or crop the screenshots. Altered evidence is harder to use later.
Step 2: Go to the official portal. Open complaint.nccia.gov.pk. This is the NCCIA complaint form. Do not use an old FIA bookmark or a link forwarded in a WhatsApp group. Scam pages sometimes copy the look of government forms.
Step 3: Fill the form. You will need your full name, CNIC number, contact details and a clear description of what happened. The NCCIA's own guidance asks for a written application with your name, address, city and contact number, a copy of your CNIC, and copies of your evidence.
Step 4: Submit and save your complaint number. You get a complaint or tracking number once you submit. Save it. This is the number you quote every time you follow up, whether through the helpline or at the reporting centre.
If you prefer not to file online, call the helpline on 1799. It is published on the official portal and runs 24 hours a day. You can also email [email protected], or report through the Pakistan Citizen Portal.
What if you want to file in person?
Visit the nearest Cybercrime Reporting Centre, called a CCRC. The NCCIA says you must visit a CCRC in person for verification of the matter. That requirement comes from S.R.O. 05/2020.
If you live abroad, you cannot file in person. The NCCIA asks you to nominate a focal person in Pakistan, usually a relative or your lawyer, who can pursue the case at a CCRC on your behalf. You need their name, city, contact number, postal address and CNIC. If you have no one in Pakistan, you may send your complaint through INTERPOL or the Pakistan High Commission or embassy in your country of residence.
What happens after you file?
Your complaint goes through an inquiry. Where the inquiry finds grounds, a formal FIR is registered and a proper investigation begins. Under the 2025 amendment, only an authorized officer of the NCCIA can investigate a PECA offence.
Investigators can request records from banks, telecom providers and online platforms, examine devices, and gather digital evidence. Cases involving platforms based outside Pakistan depend on their cooperation, which is one reason timelines differ from case to case. No fixed number of days applies to all complaints.
Where the evidence holds, the case goes to prosecution and trial in a court designated for PECA offences. The court can also order the accused to pay compensation to the victim. An appeal lies to the Sessions Court or the High Court depending on which court passed the order.
What this means for you
File early. Evidence fades and accounts get deleted. The NCCIA's own figures show financial fraud as the top reported cybercrime in Pakistan, and its officers make arrests in real cases. In September 2026 the agency raided three illegal call centres in Islamabad and arrested 212 people, including seven Chinese nationals, in an international fraud investigation, as Dawn reported.
Do not pay a blackmailer who has your private content. Paying does not stop the threat, and the law treats threats to leak intimate images as a serious offence under section 21.
If your case involves blackmail, a big financial loss, or the risk of a counter complaint, talk to a lawyer before you file. A well drafted complaint names the right section of PECA, and that matters more than most people realise.
Related reading: where to complain about online fraud in Pakistan, the law that protects you from revenge porn in Pakistan, and what happens when a cheque bounces under section 489-F. You can also browse all guides on the Lexiber blog or visit the Lexiber home page.
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