Mysuru: The Mysuru City Police have issued an advisory to people to be cautious about online and cybercrimes as every third person in the nation is falling victim to cybercrime-related incidents.
In a release, commissioner of police Ramesh Banoth on Monday said people have lost their earnings and valuables by falling prey to cyber fraudsters.
Cyber Crime police officials have received a lot of complaints that people have been cheated by cyber frauds in the name of work-from-home job offers and investment in cryptocurrencies and the share market. Cybercrime is emerging as most challenging and city police have decided to spread awareness about other forms of cybercrimes like digital house arrest.
Banoth asked people to remain vigilant about a new scam being perpetrated by cyber criminals dubbed as ‘digital house arrest’ as various cases have been recorded in many cyber police stations across the country
‘Digital house arrest’ refers to a fraud where impostors impersonate law enforcement officers, dupe the victims into believing that their bank account, SIM card, Aadhaar card, or other cards linked to their bank account.
In such cases, the fraudster identifies themselves as investigating officials from central premier investigating agencies. They call the victim that his Aadhaar card was used to transport drugs in some courier packages that were seized by them. They also start interrogating him, creating fear in the mind of the victim. They also ask the victim not to move out and ask him to download a Skype application and give remote access to the desktop.
“A man appears before the victim dressed a police officer and interrogates him for hours and asks the victim to show his bank account details to see if he had received any ‘foreign funds’. Meanwhile, they hack his system and drain his account completely,” stated the officer.
As cyber thugs are also luring people with promises of easy money through stock investments, the commissionerasked people not to click on links from strangers, especially those promising quick financial gain.
“Fraudsters would add you to a Telegram group where investments are discussed. They would also add their accomplices to the group to share how they earned high profits by investing money through them. This way, they ask you to invest through them, and when you try to withdraw it, you realize you are being fooled,” said the release.
Similarly, cyber gangs are sending random messages offering good income by working from home. Once a person shows interest, they send you a link for more details and the moment one clicks that link, the mobile is handled and thereafter, fraudsters transfer money from their account.
The city police commissioner asked the public to call the national helpline 1930 to report cyber frauds or file complaints at cyber police Station or their near police station if they have fallen victim to such cybercrime.
