E-Paper
Fraudsters use Rs 20-lakh crore special economic package as bait for duping people
Fake websites sending messages to people to fill their bank details in an online form so that Rs 15,000 can be deposited directly in their accounts
Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the special economic package of Rs 20-lakh crore to revive the economy, many fake websites were launched to dupe people on the pretext of ‘corona funds’ for citizens.
Several residents in Ludhiana have received messages via WhatsApp, Facebook, e-mails and other social networking sites from these websites informing them that they are also eligible for cash benefit under the special package of the government.
In the messages, the people are being asked to fill their bank details in an online form so that Rs 15,000 can be deposited directly in their accounts.
The district police have taken note of these websites and initiated a probe.
A local, Meenakshi Chaudhary, chose Twitter to file her complaint. She said she received a link, in which she was asked to fill her bank details to avail financial help of Rs 15,000 from the government.
She added she and her family members filled the forms, but she suspecting something fishy, lodged a complaint with the police.
The fraudsters are using pictures of the Prime Minister to trap the people. The police have detected four such fake websites and initiated an investigation to trace the operators.
Information technology expert and chief executive officer (CEO) of Cyber Frame Solutions Anoop Gupta said, “Fraudsters resort to dupe people through various mediums. Earlier, they used to dupe people on the pretext of lottery, and then they started stealing money from bank accounts of people after getting their bank details. Now, they have started targeting people on the pretext of economic package.”
Gupta advised people not to share their bank details with anyone, especially online. He added if the government would start any scheme, the information about that will reach the people through the administration.
Police commissioner Rakesh Agrawal said such websites are fake and being operated by fraudsters. “I have already marked an inquiry to the cyber cell,” he added.
