An Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay student was defrauded of Rs 7.29 lakh by a scammer who pretended to be an employee of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and intimidated him with the threat of a 'digital arrest', police reported on Tuesday, November 26.
What is 'Digital arrest'?
'Digital arrest' is an emerging form of cyber fraud where scammers impersonate law enforcement officials or government agency staff, using audio or video calls to threaten victims. They then pressurise the victims into making payments by holding them hostage in a virtual manner.
According to sources, an official from the Powai police station in Mumbai stated that the scammer informed the victim that 17 complaints of illegal activities had been filed against his mobile number.
The caller informed the victim that to prevent his number from being deactivated, he would need to obtain a no objection certificate (NOC) from the police and then threatened the victim that he was transferring the call to the Cyber Crime Branch.
Scammers impersonating police officers
During the WhatsApp video call, a man dressed as a police officer accused the victim of being involved in money laundering and demanded his Aadhar number. The scammer pressured the student into transferring Rs 29,500 via United Payments Interface (UPI), reported Careers360.
The accused then further threatened the victim, asserting that he was under a digital arrest and could not contact anyone.
DO NOT share your bank account details
The scammers then demanded additional money, prompting the victim to provide his bank account details, which allowed the fraudsters to steal Rs 7 lakh from his account. After receiving the money, the victim was told that he was safe and would not face any arrest.
Realising he had been deceived after researching "digital arrest" online, the student reported the incident to the police and filed a complaint against the unidentified suspects, the official told Careers360.
To register a complaint regarding cybercrime, one can visit the portal cybercrime.gov.in for more information.
