Cyber Crime in India has been become the biggest problem now. In the first 4 months of 2024, 7,40,000 cybercrime complaints have been registered in our country. Around 1800 crores have been looted from investment scams, extortion, digital arrests, and other frauds between January and April. I am talking about official figures, by the way, which have been registered in the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal which is run by the Ministry of Home Affairs. Online frauds have become quite a big thing now, and tomorrow it can fool you or me.

As per the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, in May 2024, every day 7000 cybercrime complaints were registered, which are 113% more than 2021-23. Money is the main motive; in 85% of cases, online financial fraud is happening. Financial fraud increased 1000% in the last 5 years, with 1 lakh scams in 2023 reported. A new scam called digital arrest has looted 120 crores, and trading scams have also reached another level, with estimates of Rs 1500 crores duped from people.

Once you are caught in an online scam, it is very difficult to get back your money. Police can help you in less than 10% of cases. Maybe that is why, out of shame, a lot of online financial frauds are not even reported in our country. These frauds are often due to our carelessness. For example, we take the word on WhatsApp as a God’s message. Or we invest money in schemes that promise to double our money overnight.

Fraudsters can steal your information, biometric data, and take money out of the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AEPS) without you even knowing. A survey has shown that in the last 3 years, 47% of urban households have reported at least one financial fraud, whether it is UPI, credit card, or any other investment fraud. In this survey of 23,000 people, it was found that credit cards are often charged without authorization, or in UPI, payments are lost instead of received.

Every day, criminals come up with new techniques to loot us. It’s not just about money; we see in the news that people are taking their lives because of financial fraud, extortion, or illegal loan apps. How can you protect your family and friends from this biggest fraud? What are these online frauds? What is the government doing to deal with this? What can you do to protect yourself?

In big frauds, politicians and businessmen eat taxpayer money, but this online fraud is more dangerous. These fraudsters will eat your bank balance, your reputation, your life, and not care. And that’s why you can stop it; you can warn people. We have written this article completely copyright-free. You can share it, download it, re-upload it—there’s no problem. Just warn your family and friends that this has become the biggest scam in the country.

The entire team of Hastyread spent a lot of time researching over this matter. We found out about 6 latest or evergreen online frauds that can target us, and we will also talk about 6 security measures to avoid these attacks. But before that, you need to understand that fraudsters are not just sitting in a corner trying to defraud you. Today, digital fraudsters have become very capable, technologically knowledgeable, and cunning criminals.

If you have ever been a victim of financial fraud, don’t sit quietly. Silence gives courage to criminals. These criminals have trapped the best of the best in their latest digital arrest scam. Mr. SP Oswal, Chairman and Managing Director of Vardhman Group. You might think he has so much money and experience that no one can fool him. But he was defrauded by 7 crores.

A gang filed a fake case against him. A fake virtual courtroom, with a fake Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, made the case heard. Fake documents were created, and Oswal was kept in digital arrest for 2 days. The fake documents sent to Oswal had the Supreme Court’s emblem, barcode, and digital signature—all designed to resemble real court documents. Following the notice, Oswal deposited 7 crores in different accounts.

But fraudsters haven’t just fooled businessmen; they’ve also targeted scientists. In Indore, Madhya Pradesh, fraudsters digitally arrested a scientist and looted 71 lakh rupees from him. In Noida, the same thing happened to an 89-year-old retired Major General, who lost 2 crores over 5 days of digital arrest. A doctor named Pooja Goyal in Noida was also digitally arrested, losing 60 lakh rupees due to a scam involving obscene videos.

So, one thing is clear: fraudsters are not targeting anyone specifically. They can go after senior government officials, retired officials, businessmen, doctors, and even PG students. For example, in Ahmedabad, a 27-year-old woman was informed by officers claiming to be from a central agency that there was a parcel in her name containing drugs and that action would be taken against her. A CBI officer asked her to undress during the digital arrest to identify birthmarks, and the fraudsters transferred all her money.

Digital arrest is a type of cybercrime where fraudsters video call and pretend to be law enforcement agencies. We see two very common scams today: “Your parcel has drugs in it,” or “A registered mobile phone in your name has been used for illegal activities.” If the victim agrees, they enter phase 2: digital arrest, where they are confined to their house, and must stay in front of their device with the camera on. The fraudsters interrogate you, and you can’t take help from anyone because you have to be in front of the camera.

Eventually, it leads to a settlement where you pay a hefty sum to save your life and reputation. Scamsters often demand payment in cryptocurrency or gift cards, making it difficult to track them. But these frauds wouldn’t happen if victims knew there is no such thing as digital arrest in our legal system. Many are so scared of police and law enforcement that they surrender to digital arrests.

The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center has issued a press release assuring citizens that law enforcement agencies cannot arrest you digitally. If you ever receive such a call, demand that they come to your home and issue a notice. Digital India doesn’t mean you should sit idle and conduct all transactions online.

Even if you manage to avoid digital arrest, fraudsters are still waiting for you. Here are the 6 top scams that our team identified, from which crores of rupees are being looted.

UPI Scam. Our lives have become easier because of Digital India and UPI, but so have the lives of digital fraudsters. In 2022-2023, around 1 lakh UPI-based frauds were reported. If you’re not careful, your money can be lost digitally very easily, especially with QR code scanning. In Bangalore, 41% of cybercrime incidents are related to QR code scanning.

Sextortion is a dangerous form of telecom fraud. Scammers video call people, and when the person picks up, they find a woman engaging in indecent acts. Your video is recorded during this time. Then, the police call and inform you that a case of obscenity has been filed against you, presenting your video as proof.

Telegram Fraud. Who doesn’t want to earn money from home? You might receive a job offer on WhatsApp, then be added to a Telegram group. You are given various tasks like watching videos on social media and increasing their views. Initially, you might receive some money, which increases your trust. Then, you’ll be asked to pay for training or to grow the business. Once you pay a large amount, the person disappears.

AI scams. Criminals are using AI to deceive people. They might call pretending that someone’s son has been in an accident, asking for money for medical expenses, or claiming someone’s daughter has been arrested and demanding immediate payment for a settlement. You might even hear a voice on the phone that sounds almost real. With AI, it’s easy to replicate someone’s voice and make them say anything.

Link-Based Cheating. Every scam doesn’t require advanced technology. Human weaknesses are a boon for fraudsters. You might receive a link claiming you’ve won a prize, but you must fill out personal details. You’ll never receive the prize, but your information is now compromised.

OTP Scam. To protect against scams, the government has made two-factor authentication (2FA) mandatory. However, fraudsters often impersonate bank representatives or e-commerce operators, asking for OTPs. By doing this, they gain access to your sensitive information and money.

How much loss can you incur from these scams? Between 2014 and 2023, 65,000 fraud cases were detected in Indian banks, with 4.65 lakh crores looted over 10 years. Although banking regulations are becoming stricter, digital frauds are growing more serious. The government recognizes this as a problem, but actions on the ground are not sufficient to deter fraudsters.

The government has launched an online suspect registry storing data on 12 lakh cybercriminals, which can be accessed by various agencies. Additionally, through the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal, efforts are being made to improve reporting and resolution of cybercrimes. NCRP receives 67,000 calls daily regarding cybercrime queries. Indian Cybercrime Coordination Center has also returned 2,800 crore to 8.5 lakh victims, marking a start in combating this issue.

But for further progress, your support is essential. If you’ve ever been a victim of cybercrime, report it immediately at www.cybercrime.gov.in. You can also take steps to safeguard yourself against fraud, including avoiding sharing OTPs or sensitive information over calls, and ensuring you do thorough research before investing or providing personal details.

Finally, remember that no scheme offers overnight riches; everything requires hard work. Always double-check before sharing any information. Help your friends and family become more aware of these threats. Your awareness can save lives and money.