Adarsh tells you all about the most common online scams that are doing the rounds these days….
How about we start with some numbers to drive the message home? A whopping ₹1,750 crores was lost to cyber criminals in India in the first four months of 2024 alone. Over7,40,000 cyber crime complaints were reported on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal in the same period.
According to the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), 7,000 cybercrime complaints were registered per day in May 2024, a number that has jumped 113.7% between 2021-2023 and 60.9% from 2022-2023. 85% of these reported crimes were financial online frauds.
In other words, cybercrimes and online frauds are rampant all across India and here are some of the major ones to watch out for:
1. Fedex Scam
Quite prevalent since mid-2023, this scam starts with a phone call alerting the victim that a package linked to their Aadhaar card has been intercepted by Customs officials due to the presence of illegal substances. By scaring the victim about the presence of narcotics, the caller then connects the victim to someone from the Mumbai Police Cyber Cell department. This person in turn scares the victim again with dire consequences and legal repercussions as narcotics are involved. He insists that the victim should come to Mumbai immediately and since this might not be an option, he offers an alternative, assuring the victim that he just needs to transfer some money online and once the issue is resolved his money would be returned swiftly. But once the money is transferred, the caller disconnects and is never heard from again.
2. OLX Scam
When you post something for sale on OLX or other online marketplaces, there might be people who are interested in your items. Be wary of the ones who don’t bargain and seem to be in a hurry to make the sale. In fact, they are interested in paying you even before they have collected the goods. How they trick the victim is by sending a QR code which they ask you to scan so that you can receive your UPI payment. But this is not a code for you to receive money, they send a code through which your money gets debited. Once you scan the code and if you also enter the OTP, the money you were expecting to receive will be deducted from your account.
3. Lottery Scam
Even if you have not purchased a lottery ticket, you might receive a call by an excited attendant saying that you’ve won the lottery. It is not difficult these days to somehow get hold of personal information like your name, email ID and phone number and by repeating these and saying you might have entered a lottery with your number or mail ID a while back, they get you excited about the prize you have won. But the catch is that they ask for a ‘small’ processing fee so that your prize can be shipped to you. If you me the mistake of making that payment, you will never hear from the ‘attendant’ again.
4. Employment Opportunities
Again, if you have been applying for jobs online, it would be easy for people who use job portals to hire to get your information. So when you get a call from someone claiming to be from an affluent MNC, you might not think twice. They offer you a job with a decent pay and great benefits and tell you that the job is yours if you claim it soon as they have other candidates on standby. All they demand is a small ‘processing fee’ to complete the hiring process. This is the scam where they take your money and disappear.
5. Credit Card or Loan Approval
Oftentimes, we are in dire need of money so when we get a call saying that there is a credit card or loan that is already approved in our name, we might just take the bait. To convince us further, they even offer the loan money the same day without any paperwork. Just like the previous two scams, all they need is a small processing fee. Once this money has been paid up, these people will stop answering your calls. By taking small amounts of money from unsuspecting people, these scammers eventually steal crores of rupees in total.
6. Sim Card Scam
You get a call from a telephone operator saying that all sim cards and phone connections in your name are to be cancelled within an hour as you haven’t updated your contact details on their server. This sounds scary as no one wants to lose connectivity. The operator then gives you a complicated, long drawn solution which involves a lot of documents and proofs and you having to go to several offices to get your sim card verified again. When you seem vulnerable, they offer another solution where they will take care of all the documentation for a ‘small fee’. Once they have your money, they disappear as usual.
7. Phishing
Phishing has been prevalent for a few years now but fraudsters come up with new ways to trick people. Phishing is essentially fraudulent communication that appears to come from a reputable or authentic source. But in reality, it’s just a ploy to steal your data or your money. In most cases, people are targeted through phone call, emails or text messages. All they need from your is an OTP or a UPI code and they will then steal your money without you even realizing it. You can read more about phishing scams here:
How to Spot if you are being Scammed
While these scammers keep coming up with new and innovative ways to scam people online, there are certain tips you can keep in mind to ensure that you don’t get scammed:
1. Urgency: Scammers always rely on urgency and fear tactics. They urge you to react quickly and take swift action or scare you with dire consequences. In this urgency, you don’t think properly and end up losing money.
2. Suspicious links: Some of the links that the messages or mails ask you to click on might not look legit. Avoid clicking on suspicious links.
3. Grammatical errors: As they frame the messages themselves, there might be grammatical or spelling errors in them. If you spot multiple errors, you should treat the message with suspicion.
4. Mismatched URLs: Oftentimes, when trying to pose as employees of a certain company, these scammers send links which might seem like they belong to the company but if you look closely, you can spot a mismatch in the URLs.
5. Requesting personal info: Ideally no one should randomly call you up and ask for personal information or OTPs. If you feel someone is making you uncomfortable by asking for personal info or data, hang up immediately.
How to Protect yourself from Online Scams
While there is no foolproof method, there are some things you can do to avoid getting scammed. First and foremost is to never share personal information. Never share OTPs, UPI pins, passwords or any other personal information with strangers.
Do not scan random QR codes or dubious links. Double check before pressing confirm and always use 2 factor authentication to increase your security. Also keep your login passwords and pins different from each other and update them regularly. Also ensure all software updates are done regularly.
Here are some more tips on how to keep yourself safe from online scammers:
Are there any other scams that you know about? Do let us know in the comments section.
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