Cases of cyberfraud on the rise in Davanagere

DAVANAGERE: Davanagere reported 70 cybercrime cases over seven months. Fraudsters are targeting high-profile individuals by exploiting the 5G technology and cyberfraud trends that were used in the pandemic time.

Despite the establishment of the Cyber Economics and Narcotic Crimes (CEN) police station and regular warnings, efforts to curb the rising scams have been unsuccessful. Online fraudsters primarily target high-profile individuals, taking advantage of 5G technology.Even educated individuals like doctors, professors, and IT professionals, have fallen prey to these scams. Davanagere district police are looking to raise public awareness through social media, yet the number of cybercrime cases repoted, continue to increase.A 75-year-old retired professor received a call from someone claiming to be the Bengaluru police commissioner. In an attempt to clear his name, he transferred Rs 20 lakh and Rs 6 lakh in stages to the fraudster's account.Another victim, a 50-year-old accountant, was lured by a WhatsApp link stating, "Investing in stock market can yield a 400% profit..." He joined a WhatsApp group where three individuals posing as admins persuaded him to invest money.

Between July 21 and Aug 16, he transferred Rs 26 lakh in stages. Only after realising that he could not recover his funds, did it became clear that he had been scammed.Another resident of Anjaneya Layout was defrauded of Rs 33.45 lakh through promises of high returns from stock market investments. The 50-year-old downloaded an app and transferred money to a specified bank account between Aug 11 and Aug 20. Upon noticing that stock values did not increase, he recognised the fraud.In Haveri district, Ranebennur, the village administrative officer fell victim to a sophisticated cyber scam and lost Rs 75.42 lakh. The case was registered at the CEN police station, Haveri."The department has developed a manual for new types of online fraud and cybercrime investigation and quick resolution. Training is provided periodically to improve the investigative system. Iformation of bank accounts and mobile SIMs involved in cybercrimes are being collected for investigation," shared a police officer.