KOCHI: Two months ago a lecturer with a reputed
college in Kochi got an SMS intimating her of
winning Rs 20 crore. She was informed that her
phone number has been randomly chosen for the
prize through an online lottery.
She was given an email ID to know more details.
Out of sheer curiosity she sent a mail and that
was the beginning.
Fortunately she lost only Rs 48,000 by the time the
police asked her to stop making a fool of herself by
sending money in the name of ‘processing fee’ and
‘income tax clearance’ to fraudsters operating across
the globe.
Have you ever responded to an email intimating you of
winning lakhs of dollars? You could be a victim of online
lottery frauds in Kochi. If the recent statistics available
with the City Police Cyber Cell are to be believed,
Kochi is fast becoming a favourite destination of online
lottery fraud operating in and out of the country.
In a dangerous trend these fraudsters have shifted their
base from South African countries to Indian cities like
Mumbai and Delhi. “For more authenticity they provide the
bank accounts of new-age banks in these cities.
There will be genuine mobile numbers from abroad.
Even if you crosscheck you won’t find anything wrong.
So tracing them has become difficult,’’ said SI Francis
Pereira who heads the Kochi City Cyber Cell.
In 2008-09 a total of seven online job frauds,
six online lottery cheating cases and 11email
identity hacking cases were registered at the Kochi
City Cyber Cell. Recently the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) warned the public about online money frauds and
cheatings.
The RBI said that ‘fraudulent offers of money in foreign
exchange are being made through e-mails by certain
foreign entities or individuals, including Indian residents
acting as representatives of such entities or individuals.’
The money offer is made on the pretext of helping them.
Once they establish contact with the victim, they start
asking for financial details including bank accounts of
the individual. Usually they ask one to remit an initial
deposit for transaction purposes.
Sometimes the fraudsters use the name and logo of established
financial institutions in the country or abroad for authenticity.
The RBI said that the bank does not maintain accounts in the name
of individuals or companies to hold funds for disbursal. Referring
to online lottery frauds, the RBI warned the public that remittance
in any form for participating in lottery schemes is prohibited under
the Foreign Exchange Management Act 1999.
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