Cyber fraud cases are on the rise in Pune, with a staggering 850 cases reported between January and July this year, resulting in a loss of ₹198.45 crore.
IT engineers and retired professionals are among the hardest hit, targeted by fraudsters employing various schemes such as task fraud, Facebook friend request fraud, matrimony fraud, sextortion, and online fraud through loan apps, credit cards, and cryptocurrencies.
These fraudsters often use the names of reputable agencies like INTERPOL, the Intelligence Bureau (IB), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Crime Branch, and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to lend credibility to their scams.
In a recent case, a 74-year-old resident from Sinhagad Road was deceived by cybercriminals posing as a police officer from Delhi on July 5. The case was registered on August 5. The fraudster informed the victim that his name was linked to a money laundering case and that his Aadhaar card was found with one of the accused, Rahul Sharma. The fraudster threatened the victim and pressured him to speak with another fake CBI officer for clarification.
The fraudster then sent a fabricated arrest warrant and a letter about seizing the victim’s bank account via WhatsApp to intimidate him further and warned him not to disclose the situation to his family. Exploiting this fear, the fraudster convinced the victim to transfer ₹49.20 lakh through Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS), promising to return the money if it was not involved in money laundering.
Speaking to The Free Press Journal, Suresh Shinde, Senior Police Inspector, Cyber Police Station, said, "Fraudsters use names of entities like Provident Fund, Army, SBI, Mumbai Police, and Narcotics Department to deceive individuals. These scams pose significant risks to victims’ financial security. Additionally, fraudsters lure victims with promises of high returns in the stock market and lucrative work-from-home schemes, often via WhatsApp and Telegram groups. Many have lost lakhs of rupees to these deceitful advertisements."
Shinde informed that a new fraud known as ‘FedEx Fraud’ has emerged, where victims receive calls about expensive gifts held up in Customs due to drugs. "Scammers, impersonating law enforcement, coerce victims into making payments for such gifts. We urge citizens to verify such claims with their families and report to the police before transferring any money. Many of the accused come from regions like Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Bihar, with districts such as Bharatpur, Alwar, Nuh, Gurugram, Mathura, and Jamtara becoming hotspots for cyber fraud," he added.
