BEWARE! Indoreans On Target Of Cyber Criminals From Bengaluru, Hyderabad

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Dear Indoreans, beware! You are a target of cyber fraudsters not only from Jamtara, its close contender Mewat and the cities bordering Bangladesh, but tech cities like Bengaluru and Hyderabad, revealed a recent findings by the police. Cyber fraudsters from Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Mewat, Patna, Dhanbad and the well-known Jamtara targeted the people in Indore and the numbers are rising. In most cases, the victims receive calls from internet-generated Pakistani mobile numbers.

This data was revealed during the investigation into complaints filed at the cyber desk of Zone-1 over the last two months since its establishment on May 25. Additional DCP Zone-1 Alok Kumar Sharma said, “We receive one to two complaints daily, totaling 53 complaints in June and July, in which 7 FIRs were registered and an accused was arrested.”

“During the investigation into several cases, we found that cybercriminals in Mewat (covering Nuh, Alwar and Bharatpur), Jamtara, the bordering cities of Bangladesh, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Dhanbad and Patna are targeting innocent people in our city,” Sharma added.

Of the complaints received, UPI fraud (30 per cent) was the most reported cybercrime, followed by social media fake accounts (20 percent), social media account hacks (19 per cent), digital house arrest (4 per cent), sextortion (4 per cent), crypto trading fraud (4 per cent), fake loan apps (4 per cent), photo morphing (4 per cent) and other cybercrimes (11 per cent).

The additional DCP said, “We have managed to recover over Rs 3 lakh and have frozen more than Rs 22 lakh in the conmen's accounts or their associates’ accounts. If we receive complaints during the ‘golden hours’, we can increase our recovery rate, as most people report after a few days, giving conmen time to transfer and withdraw the money.”

Golden hours

The ‘golden hours’ is the initial three hours after a cybercrime occurred. People can report on Cyber Helpline 1930 or on the cybercrime website, leading to better chances for recovery.

Modus operandi

Conmen target their victim after calling from an internet-generated number and sending them a link or asking them to download remote access apps. Through these apps or links, the fraudsters could go through the victim’s mobile phone remotely and access all the necessary information and private pictures to dupe them.

• Digital house arrest

• Sextortion

• Fake loan apps

• Crypto trading fraud

• UPI fraud

'Being cautious is biggest defence'

Additional DCP Alok Kumar Sharma advised that the people should cautiously manage their digital life to prevent themselves from cyber crimes and should not share personal information with anyone. Being cautious is the biggest defence against these crimes, he added. Sharma also warned about online grooming, where criminals use pre-recorded sexual videos in video calls to victimise individuals. He urged people to be vigilant and report such incidents to the police for swift action.