Digital Safety

Why it matters

Your phone holds your money, your messages, your photos and your friendships. Keeping it safe is now as basic as locking your front door.

Most online harm in Bangladesh does not come from clever hackers. It comes from a stolen password, a shared OTP, a photo sent to the wrong person, or a fake page that looked real. The good news is that a few habits stop most of it.

This guide covers those habits, the laws that protect you, and what to do if something has already gone wrong. If you are in danger right now, call 999.

Passwords and 2-step verification

Your email and Facebook accounts are the keys to everything else. If someone gets into your email, they can reset the passwords on your other accounts.

• Use a long password for each important account, such as a short sentence only you would think of. Do not reuse it anywhere else.
• Turn on 2-step verification (also called two-factor authentication) on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Gmail and any other account you care about. An authenticator app is safer than SMS codes.
• Save your backup codes somewhere safe and offline.
• Lock your phone with a PIN, not a pattern that others can see over your shoulder.
• Check “where you are logged in” in your account settings and log out of devices you do not recognise.

Privacy settings

Strangers can learn a lot from a public profile: your school, your area, your family and your daily routine. Spend ten minutes on your settings.

• Set your friends list, phone number and email to “Only me” or “Friends”.
• Limit who can see your old posts and who can tag you.
• Turn off location sharing in apps that do not need it, and avoid posting where you are in real time.
• Think before accepting friend requests from people you have never met, especially new accounts with few friends.

Phishing, OTP and mobile money scams

Scammers usually rush you. A call says your bKash or Nagad account will be blocked. A message says you have won a prize, or that money was sent to you “by mistake” and must be returned. A link asks you to log in to “verify” your account.

• Do not click links in unexpected messages. Open the official app or type the address yourself.
• If someone says they sent you money by mistake, check your balance in the app. Do not trust the SMS alone, as it may be fake.
• Call the official helpline printed on the company’s own app or website, not a number given to you in a message.
• Be wary of online jobs, loans or investments that ask for a fee first.

Sextortion and image-based abuse

Sextortion is when someone threatens to share intimate photos or videos of you unless you pay, send more images or do what they say. Sometimes the images are real. Sometimes they are edited or made with AI. Either way, it is a crime, and it is not your fault.

• Do not pay and do not send more. Paying rarely ends the threats. It usually leads to more demands.
• Do not delete the chat yet. Take screenshots first. You will need them as evidence.
• Block the person after you have saved the evidence, and report the account to the platform.
• Tell someone you trust and contact Police Cyber Support for Women on 01320000888.

Secretly filming someone, for example with a hidden camera, and sharing intimate images without consent are also offences under Bangladeshi law. See which laws apply.

Cyberbullying and harassment

Repeated insults, threats, fake profiles in your name, or posts meant to shame you are harassment. They can hurt as much as anything said face to face.

• You do not have to reply. Replying often makes it worse.
• Use the block, restrict and report tools on the platform. Report fake profiles that use your name or photos.
• Keep a record: screenshots with the date, the profile link and the username.
• If you are a student, your school or university should have a sexual harassment complaint committee under the High Court’s 2009 guidelines.

Misinformation

False stories, edited videos and AI-made images spread fastest when they make us angry or afraid. Sharing them can harm real people, and in some cases can get you into legal trouble.

• Pause before you share. Ask who posted it first and whether a reliable news outlet reports it.
• Search for the image or a key phrase to see where it really came from.
• Be extra careful with posts about religion, elections, violence or named people.

Public Wi-Fi

Free Wi-Fi at cafés, campuses and stations is handy but not private. Others on the same network may be able to see what you do or set up a fake hotspot with a similar name.

• Avoid logging in to banking or mobile money apps on public Wi-Fi. Use your mobile data instead.
• Check that websites start with “https”.
• Turn off automatic connection to open networks.

Protecting children online

Under the Children Act 2013, anyone under 18 is a child. Younger brothers, sisters and cousins often get phones before they understand the risks.

• Talk openly about what they do online, and make sure they know they can come to you without being punished.
• Use the parental controls and age settings built into phones, YouTube and games.
• Teach them never to share photos, their school name or their location with people they met online.
• If a child is being groomed or abused online, call the Child Helpline on 1098 or 999 in an emergency.

Which laws apply

These are the main laws that can help if you are harmed online. Laws change often, so check the sources at the end of this page.

• Cyber Security Act

  2026

  Passed in April 2026, replacing the 2025 ordinance. Makes it an offence to publish, or threaten to publish, content for blackmail, sexual harassment, revenge porn or sextortion: up to 2 years or Tk 10 lakh, rising to 5 years or Tk 20 lakh where the victim is a woman or a child. Online fraud and extortion are also offences. Further amendments are under discussion.

• Pornography Control Act

  2012

  Makes it a crime to make, record or spread pornographic material, including secretly filming someone, for example with a hidden camera. Material involving a child is treated more seriously.

• Women and Children Repression Prevention Act

  2000

  Covers serious crimes against women and children, including rape and sexual oppression, tried in special tribunals. Amended by an ordinance in March 2025.

• Personal Data Protection Ordinance

  2025

  Bangladesh’s first general data protection law. Some parts take effect in phases, about 18 months after it was issued in November 2025.

What to do if you are harassed, blackmailed or scammed online

1. Save the evidence Take screenshots of messages, profiles, links, payment receipts and transaction IDs. Note the dates and times.
2. Do not pay, and do not delete Do not send money or more images. Keep the chats until you have reported them.
3. Report to the platform Use the report tools on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or WhatsApp. If money was taken, call your mobile money provider or bank straight away using its official number.
4. Contact Police Cyber Support for Women Call 01320000888 or message facebook.com/PCSW.PHQ. You can also email cybersupport.women@police.gov.bd.
5. Call 999 if you are in danger If someone threatens your safety or knows where you are, call 999 at once.
6. File a GD or complaint at the police station Take your evidence and a copy of your ID. A General Diary (GD) creates an official record, and the police can open a case.
7. Get free legal help Call Government Legal Aid on 16699 to ask whether you qualify for a free lawyer, or contact Pothikrit.