They are speaking to NIA, money will have to be transferred… 78 year old woman cheated by showing fear of ‘digital arrest’ 38 lakhs

Bengaluru: As fast as technology is making people’s lives easier, cyber criminals are also targeting people by adopting new methods. A recent case reported from Bengaluru is an example of this, where swindlers duped a 78 year old woman of lakhs of rupees by threatening her with “digital arrest”.

This incident is from Indiranagar area of ​​Bengaluru. The woman received a phone call on the afternoon of March 11. The caller introduced himself as an officer of the National Investigation Agency (NIA). He frightened the woman and said that her documents had been used in cases related to money laundering and obscene content. Not only this, it was also claimed that a bank account has been opened in his name in Mumbai, from which money has been sent to the terrorists.

Pressure created in the name of ‘investigation’

The thugs who made the call told the woman that she was under serious investigation and if she did not cooperate, she would be arrested. After this he threatened her with “digital arrest” and kept the woman on phone and WhatsApp video calls for several hours. The woman was also told not to talk to anyone and not to stop the call as the investigation was ongoing. During this, the swindlers assured him that his bank accounts were being checked and verified.

Money transfer was done by taking advantage of fear

The swindlers told the woman that to check her account, she would have to transfer money to another account. Under constant pressure and fear, the woman agreed to his request. He transferred about Rs 38 lakh through RTGS. When no response was received from the fraudsters for a long time, she realized that she had become a victim of fraud.

Police are investigating

After the incident, the woman lodged a complaint with the East Division Cyber ​​Crime Police. The police is now investigating the matter and is trying to identify the swindlers as well as trace the money transactions.

‘Digital arrest’ fraud increasing rapidly

For some time now, “Digital Arrest” has become a new and dangerous method of cyber fraud. In such cases, criminals scare people by pretending to be officers of police, CBI, NIA or other government agencies. They keep the victim on call or video call for hours, so that he cannot get help from anyone. During this time they get money transferred in the name of investigation or verification.

Police warning and advice

Cyber ​​Police has clarified that no investigating agency in India arrests anyone over phone or video call nor asks to transfer money. If any such call comes, it should be disconnected immediately and complaint should be made on cyber helpline 1930. Especially elderly people need to be more cautious in such matters, because fraudsters often make them easy targets.