Hyderabad woman loses Rs 10 lakh in fake TRAI scam, police recover full amount
Hyderabad: A 68-year-old retired woman from Hyderabad became the victim of a cyber fraud perpetrated by scammers impersonating officials.
The Cybercrime police reported that the victim received a call purporting to be from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The fraudsters claimed that an FIR had been lodged against her at a Mumbai police station. To heighten the illusion, the scammers, disguised as police officers, conducted a Skype call with the victim, directing her to contact the Mumbai Crime Branch. There, she was falsely implicated in a money laundering case involving a fictitious Naresh Goel.
The victim, believing the false information, was then tricked into verifying her bank account details. Frightened and convinced of her involvement in a crime, she transferred a significant amount of Rs 10 lakh to the scammers.
The victim promptly reported the incident, and an FIR was registered. The Cybercrime police conducted a thorough investigation and recovered the stolen amount of Rs 10 lakh, which was subsequently returned to the victim.
In recent incidents in Hyderabad, individuals have fallen victim to various scams, highlighting the growing threat of online fraud. A 31-year-old medical professional from Secunderabad was targeted by an advanced cyber fraud scheme. The targeted person received a phone call from an individual claiming to be from FedEx, alleging that an illegal package had been shipped from Mumbai to Iran.
In another incident, a 27-year-old female private employee from Hyderabad fell victim to a scam while seeking a match on Shaadi.com.
Police warning to public:
* If a call sounds suspicious, hang up right away and report it to the police without being afraid.
* Be careful of scam calls pretending to be from companies like FedEx, BSNL, or TRAI.
* Scammers try to trick you by playing with your emotions. Don’t send money to unknown accounts based on promises from strangers.
* Real police officers won’t call you and ask for money to fix problems.
Victims of cyber financial fraud are advised to report the incident immediately by dialing 1930 or visiting cybercrime.gov.in.
