Mumbai: The cyber crime police have issued advisories for citizens warning them about the ongoing cyber crimes such as fake traffic e-challans and SIM hijack via bogus credit card offer frauds.
According
to the advisory, cyber-criminals are impersonating traffic officials on WhatsApp, sending fake messages with malicious links. Some of the red flags for the citizens are that to check if the messages are received from unknown numbers claiming to be traffic police, APK files received with suspicious names like "Traffic Fine" or "RTO Challan", payment requests via personal UPI handles and URLs not ending in .gov.in or unrelated to parivahan.gov.in. "The citizens should not click suspicious links or download unknown APK files and not pay via personal UPI handles," the alert stated.
Warning the citizens about SIM hijack via bogus credit card offers, the alert stated, "Fraudsters initiate contact with the victims by offering attractive credit card deals such as high limits, no joining fees, lifetime free usage etc. They impersonate bank officials and collect critical identity data such as PAN, Aadhaar, mobile number and date of birth. Using forged documents or stolen credentials, the scammers approach telecom providers and request a SIM swap, claiming device loss or upgrade. Once the SIM is reissued in the fraudster’s possession, they receive all OTPs and alerts linked to the victim’s banking, UPI, and card services. Funds are then siphoned through rapid transactions from the victim's bank account, often routed via mule accounts or prepaid wallets."
"The scammers initially contact the victims via phone call, SMS, or WhatsApp, often using spoofed numbers or fake bank IDs. The victims are told they’ve been “pre-approved” for premium credit cards after which the fraudsters insist on immediate KYC verification and pressure victims to share sensitive data. In some cases, victims are asked to click on links or fill out forms hosted on fake bank portals," the alert stated.
"Some of the warning signs are credit card offers without formal application or verification, requests for full KYC over unsecured channels such as phone or WhatsApp, sudden mobile network loss despite active recharge, OTPs or transaction alerts received without user action and bank account debits or UPI transactions without consent," the alert added.
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