The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Central Government, RBI and CBI and others and sought their answers in the case of fraud of about Rs 23 crore by keeping a 78-year-old retired banker under digital arrest for a month. The bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi has issued notice on the petition filed by Naresh Malhotra.

In the petition, a request has been made to direct the concerned banks to deposit the defrauded amount of Rs 22.92 crore in the accounts of the petitioner. Malhotra has made Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, City Union Bank and Yes Bank as parties in the case.

Cyber ​​criminals had declared themselves as ED-CBI officers

Cyber ​​criminals, posing as officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and CBI, defrauded a retired banker of South Delhi’s Gulmohar Park area of ​​Rs 23 crore by allegedly keeping him under digital arrest for about a month.

In this regard, an official said that the accused allegedly told the victim that his Aadhaar card was related to drug trafficking, terrorism financing and Pulwama terror attack. After this, on the pretext of investigation, the accused kept him in a state of ‘digital arrest’ in his flat.

What did the police tell?

Police said, ‘The fraudsters instructed her not to leave the house and forced her to transfer her savings to various bank accounts over a period of one month.’

Realizing that he was cheated, Malhotra lodged a complaint on the National Cyber ​​Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) on September 19 last year, after which the case was handed over to the ‘Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations’ (IFSO) unit.

Police said that an FIR has been registered in this case and transactions from various bank accounts related to the fraudulently obtained amount of Rs 12.11 crore have been frozen.

Imagine, you are sitting at home and suddenly you get a call. The person in front calls himself an officer of police, CBI or any government agency. It says that an illegal parcel has been detected in your name or some serious crime related to your Aadhaar has come to light. In panic, before you can understand anything, you get the threat of ‘digital arrest’. In such a situation, the question arises, where did the scammers get your number and personal information? This is what we know in this article.

Why is online fraud increasing rapidly?

Cases of online fraud are continuously increasing in the country. Sometimes sextortion, sometimes cheating in the name of work from home, sometimes fake investment schemes, now the methods of scammers have become more dangerous than before. They don’t just call, but talk about you with full preparation. They know your name, address, mobile number and sometimes even information related to Aadhaar or bank. This is the reason why people easily believe his words.

Where do scammers get your data from?

Often people have this question in their mind that how does so much information of a common man reach the scammers? There are many ways behind this, through which your personal information gradually comes into their hands.

Data leak: the biggest reason

Data leak has become the biggest reason for cyber fraud today. Many times, users’ data gets leaked from an app, website or company’s server. This data is sold on the dark web, where scammers buy it. It contains phone number, email, address and sometimes even identity related information. Apart from this, registering a number in a shopping mall, hotel, online form or for any service can also be risky. If the security there is weakened, then the same data can reach the wrong hands.

Trap of phishing emails and fake websites

Phishing is still the most common and effective method. Scammers send links via SMS, email or WhatsApp that look like bank, delivery company or government websites. As soon as you click on the link, a fake website opens. Here you are asked for login details, OTP or card number. Many times, spyware gets installed in the phone without informing you, which keeps an eye on your activities and passes the data on to scammers.

Phone Call Scam: The Art of Tricking

Many scammers call pretending to be bank employees, customer care or officials of any government department. They talk so clearly that the other person does not even doubt. During the conversation, they ask small details and gradually prepare a complete profile. This information is later used in big frauds.

Social media opens up your life

Social media is also a treasure trove for scammers. From the pictures and posts posted on Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn, they can guess your age, birthday, job, city and even relationships. Using this information they take you into confidence and say that they know everything about you. This increases both fear and trust.

What is the truth of ‘digital arrest’

Digital arrest is not actually a legal process. This is completely a cyber scam. In this, fraudsters make video calls or phone calls by pretending to be police, CBI, ED or customs officers. They use fake IDs, fake documents and intimidating language.
They say that you are under investigation and are currently under digital surveillance. You are then forced to transfer money or provide personal information. The truth is that no government agency makes arrests over the phone like this.

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Delhi Police has achieved important success in a major cyber fraud case. The police have frozen around Rs 1.90 crore out of the Rs 14 crore 85 lakh that was defrauded from an elderly doctor couple. This fraud was done by trapping them in digital arrest.

In this scam, the victims are forced to not come out of the house and talk to anyone by threatening them over phone and video calls.

Doctor couple imprisoned in their home digitally

In this case, 81 year old Dr Om Taneja and his 77 year old wife Dr Indira Taneja, living in Greater Kailash, South Delhi, were targeted. From December 24 to January 9, both were kept under constant surveillance through phone calls and video calls.

The swindlers introduced themselves as officials of the telecom company and law enforcement agencies and said that fraudulent activities had been detected in their name. They were forced to transfer money repeatedly under threat of arrest and case.

Amount sent from Rs 700 to bank account

Police investigation has revealed that the fraudsters used more than 700 Mule Bank accounts to hide the defrauded amount. First the money was sent to seven primary accounts of Gujarat, Assam, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi and Uttarakhand.

After this, the money from these accounts was rapidly transferred to 200 to 300 other accounts, so that the police could not know the real route.

Money transferred from Guwahati to Gujarat

Delhi Police investigation revealed that on December 26, about Rs 1.99 crore was transferred to Guwahati, Assam. On December 29 and 30, Rs 2 crore each were sent to Vadodara in Gujarat. On January 2, Rs 2 crore reached the account in Mayur Vihar, Delhi and on January 5, Rs 2.05 crore reached the account located at Nepean Sea Road, Mumbai.

According to Delhi Police sources, this multi-layer mule account network is very complex. Therefore, it is taking time to trace the complete trail of money. With the help of the bank and the Financial Intelligence Unit, the police are identifying and freezing the linked accounts. At present no one has been arrested in this case but the investigation is going on at a fast pace.

Understand what is digital arrest, how to avoid it?

It is important for everyone to know that there is no such thing as digital arrest. This is not a legal process, but a way of cheating that you need to be careful of. Digital arrest is a situation when a fraudster tries to scare and threaten you by pretending to be ED, CBI, court, police or bank officer.

The fraudster will tell you that there is a case registered in your name, your Aadhaar or bank account is being used for wrongdoing, etc. Then he will tell you that you are being ‘digitally arrested’. For this he will keep you on video call for hours. Will refuse to go out of the house, will refuse to talk to anyone.

immediately disconnect the calls of such thugs

Not only this, the fraudster will make you transfer a lot of money. Will give fake threats. If you are not able to understand his scam then out of fear you will even give him money, whereas the truth is that there is no such thing as digital arrest in India. Police or CBI will never make a video call to you, nor will they arrest you digitally. No official investigating agency will ask you for money for investigation.

If you also receive such calls, disconnect the call immediately without fear. Do not transfer any money to the fraudster and immediately inform the police or complain on cyber crime helpline number 1930.

Online Fraud: Nowadays scammers are adopting various tactics to cheat people. One of these is digital arrest fraud. In this, the person is threatened with arrest online and in this way money is extorted from him. Something similar happened recently with an 84-year-old retired government officer and his wife. However, by taking appropriate steps in time, both of them were saved from losing Rs 1.50 crore. The matter is of Ahmedabad.

first threatened by calling

This elderly couple living here received a call on WhatsApp, in which the scammer introduced himself as a Court Liaison Officer. He told that his name is Pradeep Kumar. To lure the elderly person, the scammer told that he had received the news from one of his relatives that his name has cropped up in a money laundering case related to a private airline, hence he will have to appear in the online court. The caller also instructed both the husband and wife not to leave the house or allow anyone inside.

Video call also came

Every effort was made to ensure that the elderly couple did not have any suspicion from anywhere. He also received a video call from the scammers, in which a court-like background was shown, where a hearing was seen taking place. A man was sitting on the screen as a judge. Apart from this, a prosecutor and staff were also seen. The person pretending to be a judge claimed to have opened 227 accounts in the name of the couple and started interrogating them about it. When the couple refused, they were warned that they would face trouble if they did not cooperate.

Elderly people scared of digital arrest

Then the callers told him about being ‘digitally arrested’. During this time the old man was asked to remain sitting in front of the phone, while the woman was asked to transfer money. A relative of the couple also helped the scammers in this task, who explained to the couple, “The callers told them that they will have to verify all the money they currently have and only then they will be acquitted of the charges. Since they did not use online banking, they were asked to go to the bank for RTGS transfer.”

This is how the truth was revealed

On December 9, the woman went to the bank and transferred Rs 21 lakh to the scammers’ account. They thought that the money would be sent back to their account after verification. On the second day he transferred another Rs 21 lakh. He also had Rs 1.5 crore in another account. He got this money after selling a property. The scammers also asked for this money and said that if they did not transfer the money, they would be sued and would be fined heavily. Scared, she went to the bank to transfer the entire amount.

The manager found all this strange and he went to a police officer present in the bank to investigate. After this, the police went with the woman to her house, where they saw the woman’s elderly husband talking to several men on video call. When he told the people on the call that he was from the police, they immediately disconnected the call. He then told the couple that they had been cheated and advised them to go to the cybercrime helpline. The couple lodged a complaint on the National Cybercrime Portal. FIR is yet to be registered in this case.

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Cyber ​​fraud is continuously increasing across the country and lakhs of people have become victims of online fraud in the last two years. According to the report of the Department of Telecommunications, a total of 40 lakh 55 thousand people have been cyber cheated during this time. In view of this increasing criminal activity, the department has issued an advisory to be cautious and has also identified many new methods of fraud. In such a situation, let us now tell you that whether men or women, cyber thugs make them their victims the most and what has come to light in the shocking statistics.

Are women and teenagers the most victims?

According to the data of the Department of Telecommunications, out of the total victims of cyber fraud, 28 lakh 74 thousand are women and teenagers. Fake profiles on social media, luring of sending gifts, demanding money in the name of gaming and threatening to make private chats public are the main methods of cyber thugs. Due to which these groups are targeted. In view of this increasing threat, the Department of Telecommunications has also issued guidelines to take precautions.

How do swindlers trap you?

Cyber ​​​​thugs usually make friends with people by creating fake profiles on social media. After this they send gifts or demand money in the name of customer charges. Apart from this, cyber thugs lure teenagers to win the game and threaten to make the video or chat public. At the same time, cyber fraudsters also blackmail people by taking details like Aadhaar, photo or address.

What are the new methods of cyber fraud?

To cheat the common people, cyber thugs are now resorting to digital arrest, WhatsApp hacking, friendship by posing as a foreign woman, e-KYC fraud, QR code scan, screen sharing, blackmail in the name of porn search history and cheating on the pretext of job, loan, government schemes. Cyber ​​fraudsters take advantage of people’s fear, greed and personal details. According to experts, every tenth person is becoming a victim of cyber crime.

How to avoid cyber fraud?

• To avoid cyber fraud, do not chat with unknown people.
• Do not trust anyone selling expensive gifts.
• Keep in mind that courier customs never ask for money over the phone.
• Do not share address, Aadhaar, photo-video
• As soon as you receive a threat, understand that it is a cyber fraud.
• Report suspicious numbers to 1930 or Sanchar Sathi app.
• Those showing fear of FIR or arrest should immediately contact the police station.
• Avoid free Wi-Fi and very cheap online offers.
• As soon as cyber fraud occurs, call 1930 immediately.

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A shocking cyber crime has come to light in Mumbai, where swindlers cheated an 80-year-old senior woman of Rs 1.08 crore in the name of digital arrest. A woman calling herself IPS officer Rashmi Shukla and her associates hatched a complete conspiracy, falling into the trap of which the victim transferred a huge amount of money to several accounts.

According to the information, as soon as the report of the incident was received, the Central Cyber ​​Cell registered a case and started investigation. Police have also frozen the fraudulent amount of Rs 35 lakh from a bank account located in Nagpur.

How did the fraud start?

The victim woman told the police that she received a call on October 27. The caller introduced himself as an officer named ‘Vijay Khanna’ and claimed that his Aadhaar card had been used in a money-laundering case. He threatened that his mobile number would soon be blocked. The panicked woman’s call was transferred to another woman, who introduced herself as IPS Rashmi Shukla. After this the hoax of ‘digital arrest’ started.

According to the information, the thugs said that the woman is now under ‘digital arrest’ and she will have to cooperate in the investigation. A fake arrest warrant was also sent to him, on the basis of which constant pressure was created to transfer huge amounts of money. The women were threatened that if they did not cooperate, they would be immediately arrested. Due to continuous mental pressure and threats, the victim sent Rs 1.08 crore to different accounts.

Once the bank account is empty, the whole game becomes open.

After a few days, when the calls stopped coming and the amount in the bank account became zero, the victim realized that she had become a victim of fraud. He immediately contacted the police. Investigation revealed that a huge amount was sent to the bank account of a person named Hitesh Mahuskar of Nagpur. At present, the police have frozen Rs 35 lakh from his account and have registered a case against the accused under sections of BNS and IT Act.

Cyber ​​cell gave important alert

Police have issued a warning to the citizens calling this incident a serious cyber fraud. Officials clearly said that there is no provision like ‘digital arrest’ in Indian law. Any police officer can neither make an arrest nor ask for money over the phone. Cyber ​​Cell has advised not to share OTP under any circumstances, ignore unknown calls and immediately call 1930 and lodge a complaint as soon as fraud occurs.

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Digital fraud scam: India is moving towards digital economy rapidly, but with this, cases of digital fraud have also increased to dangerous levels. The thugs are now trapping people in their trap using new technical methods and looting crores of rupees. The government and the RBI are constantly taking steps, but there are challenges.

Recently, a woman from Gurugram fell victim to a scam called “Digital Arrest” and lost Rs 5.85 crore. In September 2024, some thugs made a video call as a law enforcement officer. The woman and her son were threatened to be sent to jail by showing fake IDs. Due to fear, the woman transferred Rs 2.8 crore on the first day and sent Rs 3 crore again the next day.

Government and RBI concern

In some cases, bank workers have also been found to be part of this fraud. Pratap Kesari Pradhan, a bank employee from Bangalore, was arrested by the Cybercrime Police of Hyderabad. He was a Customer Relations Officer at AU Small Finance Bank and opened fake bank accounts for thugs and shared details on WhatsApp.

There have been many such cases across the country, which show that despite government efforts and the clutches of RBI, common people are falling prey to fast. RBI Chief Sanjay Malhotra expressed serious concern over the issue on 27 January 2025 with the CEO of banks. It is estimated that about Rs 2,500 crore has been lost in digital scams in the last two years.

According to experts, the fraudsters often cheat people by creating an atmosphere of fear. In such a situation, people will have to be cautious and understand that no government agency threatens to take action on phone calls. In the event of cyber fraud, immediately call the National Cyber ​​Fraud Helpline Number 1930 or file a complaint on cybercrime.gov.in. Apart from this, always keep bank alerts active so that information of every transaction can be found immediately.

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A scary case of cybercrime has come to light in Hyderabad. Here cyber criminals kept a 76 -year -old retired government doctor digital arrest for three days. These criminals made a call to the doctor as a government official and also cheated Rs 6.6 lakh while keeping a digital arrest. The troubled victim suffered a heart attack and died. The criminals continued to send messages even after the victim’s death.

Case started with WhatsApp call

According to reports, on September 5, the victim gets a video call on WhatsApp. The caller had installed the logo of the Bengaluru Police as a profile picture. The callers also showed documents with the Supreme Court, ED and RBI seal to intimidate the woman. Scammers told the woman that her name has come in a case of human trafficking and if she does not give the money, she will be arrested.

Woman sent money due to fear

Fearing arrest, the woman transferred Rs 6.6 lakh from her pension account to the account of scammers. Scammers did not stop even after this, he continued to threaten the woman through video calls and messages. On September 8, after about 70 hours of digital arrest, the victim had chest pain. After this he was taken to the hospital, but could not survive his life. The family came to know about the woman being digital arrest after the funeral on 9 September.

How to protect yourself from such scam?

• Remember that there is no provision of digital arrest in Indian law. So if someone is asking you to arrest digital, then be cautious.
• If someone is calling you as a government official, then know the name, post and department’s name and verify it in an official way.
• Do not share your sensitive information on mail, message or call with any unknown or suspicious person.

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For the first time in the country, the country has been sentenced for cheating people by arresting digital arrest. The accused of digital arrest has been sentenced to seven years imprisonment. It was told that Cyber fraudsters Devashish Rai, who cheated by digital arrest, have been sentenced.

The fraudster, who was punished within 14 months, could not get bail even once during the hearing. The fraudster has also imposed a fine of 68 thousand rupees.

In fact, this miscreant, who hails from the draft of Azamgarh, had fraudulently fraudulently showed a fear of digital arrest from Dr. Soumya Gupta, a resident of Lucknow. The cybercrime police arrested the convict from Mandakini apartment of Gomtinagar expansion within five days of filing a case in this case and sent him to jail.

Women doctor was cheated by digital arrest
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Crime Kamlesh Dixit said that Devashish Rai, a resident of Gomtinagar Extension Sulabh Housing, has been sentenced to 7 years.

According to the DCP, in May 2024, Devashish called KGMU, a resident of Indraprastha Colony of the metropolis, Soumya Gupta and described himself as a custom officer and said that a cargo has been booked in his name, in which fake passports, ATM cards and 140 grams of MDM (drug drugs) have been recovered. Its accused cheated Dr. Soumya for 10 days and cheated Rs 85 lakh.

Bail petition of every rejected accused
The DCP said that Inspector Brijesh Kumar Yadav, who was investigating the case, arrested Devashish, who was hiding his identity, from the Mandakini apartment of Gomtinagar expansion within five days. In three months, he completed the investigation and filed a charge sheet against the guilty. The police, along with the prosecution, advocated effectively in the court. Devashish’s bail was rejected on every date from proper lobbying.