Number Plate Cloning: Amidst the increasing surveillance and traffic cameras on the roads, a new threat is rapidly emerging, which is called number plate cloning. In this crime, the registration number of another vehicle is copied and placed on one’s own vehicle. The result is that someone else commits the mistake, but the challan reaches the original vehicle owner. The recent cases reported in Hyderabad have further increased people’s concern about this problem.

How is number plate cloning done?

Investigation by Hyderabad Police revealed that some people deliberately make copies or clones of the registration numbers of other vehicles. After this, they break traffic rules by putting the same number plate on their vehicle. The cameras and automatic number plate recognition systems installed in the city only record the number, so the challan reaches the original vehicle owner. Police have received many such complaints in which people said that they were getting challans from places where they had not visited.

Also read: Now Honda cars will not run here, the company is going to pack up, know what is the reason?

Hyderabad case exposed

In one case, a person from Nellore in Andhra Pradesh started receiving challans from Jubilee Hills area of ​​Hyderabad, even though he had not gone there. Investigation revealed that 26-year-old V Suresh Kumar, who worked for a food aggregator, had removed the original registration number from his scooter and replaced it with the number of another vehicle so that he could get away with repeatedly breaking the rules. Similarly, a woman also received several challans, even though she had not even come out of the house. Later, with the help of CCTV footage, the police caught the real accused, who had made a fake plate by making slight changes in the number of his vehicle. Police officials say that they are receiving many such complaints. He has appealed to the people that if they suspect misuse of their vehicle number, then contact the police immediately. According to the report, more than 36,000 wrong challans have been issued in Hyderabad in the first 10 months of the year 2025.

How to defend and complain

If you also start getting challans without any reason, then it could be a sign of number plate cloning. In such a situation, first of all check the record of location and usage of your vehicle and match it with the date and place of the challan. If in doubt, immediately contact the traffic police, lodge a complaint on the e-challan website or helpline. Police say that using a fake or altered number plate is a serious and punishable crime. Such cases are being monitored with the help of new technology like CCTV cameras and automatic number plate recognition system. Therefore, being alert and complaining in time is the best protection.

Also read: More than 10 thousand cars booked in a few minutes, created a stir as soon as it was launched, know details here