Another online scam/cyber fraud is brewing up. I don't know if it's new or old. Beware and heads-up for you guys.
Few days back, I get an e-mail, before even I open the mail, I get the intuition that the mail is from income-tax department, as in the past I have got such mails from them due to some discrepancy in the return filing.
Finally, when I open the mail, I realized it wasn’t from the IT department. The email was sent with an attached court order (without my name) alleging watching juvenile/child p*rn*graphy. Although there are telltale signs of the fraud, yet the gullible can be easily trapped and blackmailed by the fraudsters.
The mail was signed by "
Ritambra Prakash" (ACP Crime Branch)
The attachment was signed by "
Tapan Deka" (Director IB)
A simple google search of both the above names showed they were genuine entities.
I knew at this moment that it was some sort of a scam and I had a bit of idea now that this will end with a demand of money, hence thought of playing along with the scamsters to see what's their objective.
End of their mail-1 read,
Quote:
Please be advised that if we do not hear from you within 24 hours of receiving this notice, serious legal actions would be taken against you.
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So Replied to their mail-1 - "Please what should I do next and how can I come out of this mess?"
Next day I get the mail from them - Now this time the mail has my name on it, so I knew, since I had replied to their mail previous day, they have captured the name from that mail.
They still haven't asked for money and end of their mail-2 read,
Quote:
If you agree with me on the above, an article of justice can be given to you to follow due process and redeem yourself without making you a public sex offender on the internet as this will compromise your personality and reputation on social media.
I believe I have made myself clear and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to let me know when you reply to this message.
Note: Failure to respond to this message will result in immediate legal action against you within 2 business days.
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Now replied to their mail-2 - Please what am I supposed to do and pleaded not to circulate it online.
And finally, I get the 3rd mail, demanding for the money of which read something like this, they were pretty long mails, just quoting the snippets,
Quote:
This is in acknowledgement of receipt of your e-mail.
Be reminded that this is not a private matter to start asking for forgiveness or suggesting what you want.
1 - TRIAL: The court will take all necessary measures to punish you with a heavy fine or conviction and imprisonment. The court will also publicize the case to discourage others from doing the same.
2 - OUT-OF-COURT SETTLEMENT: This option gives you an opportunity to settle the matter amicably within the Cybercrime Department by paying a fixed settlement fee of Rs. 1,15,976.00/- as required by law.
Once we hear from you, appropriate action will be initiated as per your choice from the above options.
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Now it was time to reply to their mail-3 - I acknowledged to their mail and agreed for the option of out of court settlement and also told them that I don’t have this much money to pay upfront and if they can reduce the asking amount
Next day I get mail-4 from them - They aren't ready to give me discount but are ready to take the payment in installments. Also comes the moment of truth,
Quote:
On the other hand, if you have decided to settle your case amicably before it starts trending on the Internet as a juvenile porn offender; below are the cashiers account information: - NAME-SIDI NAGGISBANU.
A/C NO-11580100127214.
IFSC CODE-FDRL0001158.
BRANCH: NEW DELHI
FEDERAL BANK
AMOUNT: RS. 1,15,976.00
Send proof of payment as soon as you make the settlement payment for proper accounting and our documentation purposes.
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Now you see where this whole saga is going. I decided to send another mail reply to them asking, if it's possible to send UPI payment rather than bank account transfer as that would be immediate. This was to find out the phone number of the person behind the scam. Waited few days for their reply,
There was a radio silence for few days and finally got their reply Mail-4, they didn’t share their UPI ID, which read;
Quote:
Yes, you can do through UPI payment in three installments as long as it from the same account to the same account.
If you find it difficult to make the transfer to the previous account, please make the deposit to the account below immediately, as failure to make the payment will result to transferring your case file to the tribunal tomorrow morning. NAME:SHAIKH SALIHA
A/C NO:71120100019158
IFSC CODE:BARB0INDELX
BRANCH: NEW DELHI
BANK OF BARODA
AMOUNT: Rs. 1,15,976.00/- |
Eventually, there is radio silence from my end and I can have a last laugh.
So now here I'm a bit muddled. We have names and bank details of the person, then how these people are able to carry out such scams. Isn't it easy for the cops/cyber-crime entities to catch hold of such culprits ?
Anyway this was to spread more awareness. Don't fall into their trap and Stay Safe !
PS- Shared as recieved, picture of the attcahement.