Alert! Cyber cons now posing as cops to dupe people, warns Delhi Police

Last month, a Vasant Kunj man was defrauded of ₹7.34 lakh by a group of cybercriminals, one of whom posed as former Delhi Police commissioner Rakesh Asthana.

The Delhi Police on Sunday issued an advisory to make citizens aware of the latest trick used by scamsters to defraud people. The police said cyber criminals are duping people and obtaining their critical information by making fake phones claiming their affiliation to the department or other enforcement agencies.

The police said that if you receive such calls, contact the nearest police station and visit their website for the mobile numbers of SHO and other officers. (Representative image)

It also shared a helpline number and a website to register a complaint if anyone receives such phone calls.

Sharing screenshots of tweets by people who received similar calls, the Delhi Police in a video message said, “If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from Delhi Police or an interactive voice response (IVR) asking to choose keywords for your personal documents, then please be alert. Cyber criminals are using scammed phone calls to dupe you of money or critical information. These cyber criminals threaten people to send money or information after falsely claiming their involvement in a criminal case.”

Identify and verify such calls from unknown numbers and do not share any personal information or send money, the police said.

What to do if you receive such fraud calls?

The police said if you receive such calls, contact the nearest police station and visit the Delhi Police website to identify the mobile numbers of the station house officer (SHO) and other officers. Register these complaints at the national portal for cybercrime: cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930.

A similar case

Last month, a 75-year-old resident of Delhi's Vasant Kunj was defrauded of ₹7.34 lakh in a case of sextortion by a group of cybercriminals, one of whom posed as former Delhi Police commissioner Rakesh Asthana, reported PTI. The cyber scammers had trapped the victim by using the modus operandi of obscene video chat followed by a call for extortion.