Mumbai: Rs 35 lakh siphoned off in 10 days

Cyber fraudsters are constantly coming up with new ways to con people. Representation pic

Within 10 days, cyber crooks have siphoned off Rs 35 lakh from the accounts of Ulhasnagar citizens by providing various assurances. The 12 cases reported are only from Zone-IV of the Thane city police jurisdiction, with the complainants being lured into ‘like and comment' jobs and KYC update scams. Zone-IV of Thane city police covers the Ambernath, Badlapur, Ulhasnagar Central, Shivaji Nagar and Vitthalwadi police stations. The police have urged citizens not to trust text messages and calls that assure part-time jobs with huge returns.

Komal Kolte, a resident of Badlapur West, received a message from an unknown number offering to pay for comments and reviews on Google Maps. When Kolte called on the number, three persons who identified themselves as Arshita Sharma, Aishwarya and Shukla convinced her to pay a small sum as a deposit to start earning returns on reviews and comments. She revealed her bank details and the fraudsters siphoned Rs 11.38 lakh from her account.

In Ambernath East, Koyagura Shrinath received a message via WhatsApp, offering him a job. When he clicked on the link, he was given a task to complete, after which he was asked to pay small amounts to get more tasks and higher returns. Falling for the trap, he kept depositing money and ended up losing Rs 6.36 lakh without getting any returns. He registered a case at the Shivaji Nagar police station against unknown persons after realising he had been duped.

In another case, Ulhasnagar resident Deepak Lalwani, 43, received a call from an unknown person on June 26 offering him an IDFC Bank credit card. He was assured by the caller that he needed to send only Rs 1 via an online transfer, along with his KYC documents to get the credit card. After Lalwani sent his information, R5.01 lakh was deducted from his account within 24 hours. An FIR was registered at the Central police station, against unknown persons, on July 1.

According to a Thane police officer, such frauds are rampant in the city. "The fraudsters lure their targets by offering various task jobs, credit card offers, online electricity bill payment and online shopping offers," the officer said, the amount siphoned off over the last 10 days only accounts for those victims who have come forward and registered complaints.

"Cyber criminals are constantly coming up with new ways to dupe people. Citizens must be vigilant and stay alert while using their cell phones. Any unknown caller, message or link can lead to the loss of money and confidential data from the cell phone. Any such incidents must be reported as soon as possible so that the police can freeze the money," Assistant Commissioner of Police (Ulhasnagar division), Amol Koli said.

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No of cases reported