In a concerning case of online fraud, a woman from Gangtok was duped out of ₹5,35,000 by a scammer she met on Facebook. The fraudster, posing as an Australian national named Raj Khurana, gained the victim’s trust through WhatsApp conversations after initiating contact on February 17.
On February 22, the scammer falsely claimed to have arrived in India but was detained at the airport due to incomplete documentation. Under the pretense of needing financial assistance for his release, he manipulated the victim into transferring the substantial amount. It was only later that she realized she had fallen prey to a scam and promptly reported the incident to the Sadar Police Station. Authorities have since launched an investigation under the IT Act, 2000, and other relevant laws.
Stay Alert: How to Protect Yourself from Online Scams
Authorities are urging the public to remain cautious when engaging with strangers online, especially those who make financial requests. Scammers often build trust over time before fabricating emergencies that require urgent monetary assistance.
To avoid falling victim to such frauds, follow these precautions:
– Verify identities – Do not trust individuals solely based on social media profiles or messages. Scammers often use fake identities.
– Never send money to strangers – Legitimate individuals or businesses will not demand unexpected payments online.
– Be cautious of emotional manipulation – Scammers often create fabricated emergencies to pressure victims into sending money.
– Report suspicious activity – If you suspect a scam, report it immediately to cybercrime authorities or local police.
Cybercrime units are actively investigating such cases, and authorities emphasize the importance of public awareness in combating online fraud. Stay informed, stay alert, and protect yourself from online scams.
Internet fraud or online fraud refers to fraudulent activities such as identity theft and financial fraud committed by malicious individuals or made-up organizations using the internet. Online scams involve using online services and software to defraud or take advantage of victims. Online frauds generally cover cybercrime activity like phishing, hacking, identity theft, data theft etc., designed to scam people out of money. Internet frauds account for millions of dollars of financial losses incurred by countries worldwide. There are many ways of protecting the data and systems of these crimes, but the foremost protection is to be aware of the many types of fraud. These include:
– Phishing and spoofing: The use of email and messaging services to dupe victims by sending links or attachments in the content that contains malware is known as phishing. Hackers try to obtain personal information such as private financial credentials, passwords etc. Once they have such confidential information, they can carry out any activity before it is detected.
– Ransomware: This is a type of malware that prevents users from accessing personal secured data, demanding payment with a promise to restore the same. Ransomware is typically carried out through phishing attacks.
– Data breach: Stealing confidential, sensitive data from an organization’s network systems and moving it into an untrusted environment is called a data breach. This includes data stolen from persons as well as institutions.
– Malware: This is the use of viruses or malicious software to break down or damage users’ devices and steal personal, confidential data after that.
The above methods of executing online frauds can be used in some common types of internet frauds. Few are listed below:
Email phishing scams: This is the most prevalent type of online fraud, which continues to pose a serious threat to individual users and businesses. Hackers will either compromise a legitimate website or make a fake website. They will then acquire a list of email addresses that can be targeted to distribute an email message aimed at duping people either morally or financially. In the email content, there could be a link that takes the user to a spoofed website, requesting their login credentials. This data thus collected can be used to steal from online accounts, corporate networks, or credit cards of the user.
Credit card scams: These frauds happen when hackers acquire users’ credit or debit card credentials by fraudulent means and use them to steal money or make fraudulent purchases. Hackers pose as genuine bank officials and lure the users into sharing sensitive details over a call or other electronic media. People continue to be tricked into these scams despite widespread awareness that financial institutions have created.
Online Dating scams: This is another typical example of internet fraud and is somehow becoming more widespread. By inviting online dating applications, hackers pose as genuine website owners and lure victims into sending money and sharing personal data to attract love interests. They create fake profiles to interact with users, develop a relationship, establish a fake emotional bond by creating a false story and ask the user for financial help.
Lottery fee fraud: This is a prevalent online fraud telling victims that they have won a big lottery. Typically, they inform users that they can claim the prize money only after paying a certain fee. People fall for this scam as fraudsters use believable language, cashing in on people’s dreams of winning large amounts of money sitting in the comfort of their homes.
Methods to protect against online frauds:
Verification of informal and financial transactions: Exchange of sensitive data or execution of monetary transactions should be verified with a financial officer to avoid opening the networks to suspicious users. Likewise, attention should be paid to what is being shared on the social media handles of the firm, as fraudsters are always alert and looking out for any information that can help their ulterior cause.
Data back-up: Frequent back-ups are necessary to recover from data loss or data corruption caused due to security breaches. Software support units provide data protection tools to facilitate periodic automatic back-ups to prevent data loss.
Keeping software updated: Out-of-date or unpatched software will allow threats to breach the security system. Cybercriminals exploit those networks where software is vulnerable to gain access to data. Updated versions bring security patches that can block out malicious network activity.
Spreading Awareness and self-educating: It is most helpful to be constantly aware of the type of online fraud being carried out so that users can guard against their impact and amp up the systems and software. Organizations can periodically conduct security awareness workshop for their employees to educate them.
Virus scanning: Scanning the systems for any viruses is helpful as hackers use software embedded in the computer of users and make it easier to sweep out confidential information needed for them to commit scams.
Changing passwords periodically: This practice will ensure that hackers cannot rely on the information they have been able to gain access to through fraudulent means.
Avoiding downloads from unfamiliar websites: Along with the downloaded files, malware and viruses may also get downloaded and cause irreparable damage to the computer.
Following these tips may go a long way to safeguard the confidential data of users and organizations. Organization must do regular third party audits to find any gaps and also deploy latest cyber protection techniques to minimize their risks.
