Raipur: Despite ongoing awareness efforts by the government and police to prevent cyber fraud, cases of digital deception continue to rise, affecting many in Chhattisgarh.
In a recent case, a 58-year-old woman in Raipur was targeted by cyber criminals who posed as officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), keeping her under "digital arrest" for 72 hours and defrauding her of approximately Rs 58 lakh.
According to the woman’s police report, the incident occurred between November 3 and 8. She received a call from someone claiming to be from the Telecom Department in Mumbai.
The caller warned her that a man named Islam Nawab Malik had allegedly opened 311 bank accounts using her Aadhaar number to conduct illegal activities. The call was then transferred to someone posing as an officer from Mumbai’s Crime Branch.
This supposed officer, calling himself Sub-Inspector Vikram Singh, intimidated the woman, demanding personal details and warning her that her phone would be disconnected and she would face arrest if she did not comply.
Frightened, the woman followed instructions and was coerced into a 72-hour WhatsApp video call, where the scammers, pretending to be police officers, accused her of involvement in serious crimes like money laundering and drug trafficking.
Throughout the call, the scammers obtained her bank information and forced her to transfer Rs 58 lakh into their accounts. On November 8, at the scammers' direction, the woman finally informed her daughter about the situation, who realized it was a scam. Unfortunately, by then, the funds had already been transferred.
The woman has since filed a complaint, and local police are investigating the case to trace the cyber criminals. This incident highlights the continued need for vigilance, as even seasoned awareness campaigns have not fully prevented such scams from impacting citizens.
