Once Shivankita Dixit, a model from Agra, won a prestigious title in the Femina beauty contest. She is now in the news for a reason that, unfortunately, is all too common. She received a call, allegedly from the CBI, claiming her bank account had been misused for illegal activities and that she was, therefore, placed in “virtual custody.” She was not allowed to switch off her phone and remained on the line until she transferred Rs 99,000 to their account. She informed her family only after the fraudsters had successfully escaped with the money. Incidents like this have become routine in India, where many victims avoid going public out of fear of shame. Recently, the media reported the case of a senior citizen who paid crores of rupees to save his family members from allegedly terror-related cases. Earlier, a bishop from Kerala revealed that he was kept under virtual arrest and released only after paying over a million rupees.
The sad reality is that hundreds of people are duped in similar ways, losing large sums of money. Yet, the police have been unable to crack these cases and bring the culprits to justice. The ease of mobile banking and the use of OTPs have only made such frauds simpler to execute. In one instance, a man mourning the loss of a family member was offered funeral services for a paltry Rs 5,000. Minutes after transferring the money, his account was drained of several lakhs of rupees. There is no law requiring anyone to answer a call, and such “digital arrests” can easily be avoided by simply disconnecting the phone. A khaki-clad policeman may still be feared, but at least he’s more reliable than a voice claiming to be from the CBI. Until people learn to be cautious with OTPs and suspicious calls, fraudsters will continue to exploit fear and ignorance for profit.
