Illegal online lending apps have defrauded Keralites of approximately Rs 100 crore, a startling revelation by the cybercrime investigation team of Kerala police. These findings stem from a collection of complaints over the past few years, underscoring the alarming extent of the scam’s reach within the state.
Intriguingly, the investigation has exposed the involvement of a recruitment agency specializing in hiring Malayalis for typist positions in Cambodia. This agency, seemingly integral to the scam, recruits individuals from Kerala at no cost, transports them to Cambodia, and assigns them various tasks related to these nefarious loan apps.
Operating via enticing social media recruitment drives, the agency dangles tempting monthly remuneration ranging from Rs 70,000 to Rs 1 lakh. A rigorous investigation is ongoing, with a particular focus on the mobile numbers featured in these deceptive advertisements.
Reports from the investigative team suggest that several individuals recruited from Kerala for similar roles have managed to escape from Cambodia, shedding light on the scale of this operation. Additionally, the police have received complaints related to loan rackets operating out of Chennai and other northern Indian regions.
Notably, Kerala faces significant financial losses daily due to Chinese trading apps that enable immediate buying and reselling of items. Recent incidents include a Kochi-based housewife losing Rs 1 crore after falling for a lottery scam. Meanwhile, hackers infiltrated the Income Tax department of Karnataka’s website, siphoning off substantial sums from individuals awaiting income tax refunds, originating from China.
The online loan mafia, astonishingly, went as far as threatening a housewife from Palakkad’s Kollenkode to repay a loan she never took. Refusal to comply led the criminals to circulate morphed explicit images of her among her phone contacts, including her daughter. Although she had merely inquired about online loans during the COVID crisis, the housewife had never borrowed one. Nonetheless, personal details, including Aadhaar information, were divulged to an online contact number, leading to relentless harassment. The torment only ceased after she filed a complaint with the Palakkad cyber police.
In a bid to tackle this burgeoning cyber menace, Kerala police are now seeking the assistance of Interpol. Their investigations span various cases, including a Rs 1 crore cryptocurrency investment fraud in Kochi, involving funds channeled into ten Chinese banks and the identification of the ten Chinese nationals perpetrating the scheme.
Furthermore, evidence has surfaced indicating significant sums are being funneled to China daily through loan apps. Perpetrators upload these apps on Google Play Store and enlist Indians to make phone calls. Indian bank accounts are used for transactions, with incoming funds swiftly converted into cryptocurrency and transferred to China. Perpetrators assess the victim’s phone contacts and Facebook friends to determine the loan amount.
The unsettling cyber threats posed by China featured prominently in discussions at a recent cybercrime conference held in New Delhi, underscoring the growing importance of addressing this global issue.
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