This research paper examines the level of cybercrime awareness among residents of Kanpur, a prominent Indian city. The study analyses residents’ understanding of cyber threats, their familiarity with preventative measures (including Network Security and Protocols), and their perception of cybercrime’s potential repercussions. The question of whether someone would report a cybercrime is addressed using machine learning techniques. The algorithms are predicting the likelihood of a “Yes” response based on the input data. The high accuracy scores of random forest and XGBoost algorithm suggest that these algorithms are effective in identifying patterns in the data that correlate with a positive response (i.e., reporting the cybercrime). Recommendations will focus on strengthening internet security, potentially integrating Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs) for emerging applications and advocating for robust cybersecurity education and awareness initiatives to reduce cybercrime in India.