Posted By :  Admin1

The FIR states that a professor at a government medical university in Uttar Pradesh was ensnared in a 'digital arrest' scam, resulting in a loss of Rs 40 lakh. According to her statement, she received a call on March 11 from Maharashtra, where the caller alleged that a phone number associated with her ID had been engaged in illegal activities, such as text message scams and money laundering. Subsequently, the call was transferred to an individual claiming to represent Maharashtra police headquarters, who accused her of creating a fraudulent account in Canara Bank, Mumbai, and warned her of an impending arrest warrant.

The professor, who is a widow and had saved money for her children's education and her own future, found herself coerced into transferring funds from her bank accounts to the scammers' provided account numbers. A total of Rs 31.31 lakh was transferred on March 11, followed by Rs 9 lakh the next day. The scammers, posing as authorities, threatened her with frozen financial accounts and claimed to have issued an arrest warrant, manipulating her into constant communication and providing personal information, under the guise of national security concerns. Realizing she had been a victim of cyber fraud, she promptly reported the incident to the cybercrime police station and filed a formal complaint, leading to the registration of an FIR. Triveni Singh, a former SP in the Cyber Cell and cyber expert, emphasized that legitimate agencies would not request a Skype call for investigation or arrest purposes, debunking the concept of a 'digital arrest'.