Manipulated charity videos blur the line between fake and genuine cases 

A new form of cyber scam has emerged in Kerala in which original charity videos by social media influencers are being manipulated by scammers by adding fake bank details to extract money from vulnerable people. Law enforcement agencies remain largely unaware of a significant number of these crimes, which are being circulated on social media platforms operated from outside the State, also seriously affecting the credibility of genuine charity videos.

“We are yet to come across this kind of a scam. However, we are on alert against such cases,” said T. Narayanan, District Police Chief (Kozhikode City). Assistant Commissioner of Police (Cyber Cell- Kozhikode) Balachandran G. said that though there are different forms of trading related online scams, charity scams are new.

Shameer Kunnamangalam, a human rights activists from Kunnamangalam in Kozhikode claimed that he has already brought this issue to the notice of the Chief Minister and the State Police Chief. He produced receipts of complaints filed at various police stations in north Kerala and the Cyber Cell.

Original videos

Mr. Shameer, who has been regularly posting videos seeking financial assistance for patients suffering from serious ailments, under the banner of his NGO Ask Care Foundation, alleged the involvement of an inter-State lobby behind such fake videos being circulated on social media even after the accounts connected to the original videos are closed.

“Recently, I posted a video seeking help for a patient in Omasseri. The video had 30,000 views in just 9 hours and we could raise ₹1.28 crore within a few days, after which the account was closed. However, a fake version of the same video, with a different account name, QR code and account name continued to run in another social media page and has crossed 10 million views. One can imagine the kind of money the holder of that account has received,” said Mr. Shameer, explainig how the fake videos scam people, especially Malayalis in the Middle East and other countries.

Shinab. K.V who runs an advertising agency in Kakkur, Kozhikode, said that he was once duped by a fake charity video. “Though it was a small amount that I lost, I was more worried that my money did not reach the right people,” he said.

Follows the trail

Mr. Shameer, who is also an advocate at the Kerala High Court, followed the trail of the bank accounts mentioned on some of these fake videos and tracked them to Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Haryana, Chandigarh, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh. “Such accounts have mostly been traced to the NSDL payment bank in Mumbai, while there are similar accounts in several other banks there. These are mule accounts and those whose names are associated with them are usually unaware of the scam. They have permitted certain people to use their Aadhaar numbers and create bank accounts for a price,” Mr. Shameer said. He expressed doubts about the engagement of people from Kerala behind these accounts from the way the videos are edited without compromising the content.

He said that there has been no follow-up on the complaints filed in this regard. “Information is available at the above-mentioned banks, but I have limitations in accessing them as a layman. The Mumbai police are also ready to help. But the Kerala police need to take an initiative by forming a special investigation team to bring these scammers into the limelight,” Mr. Shameer added.

‘Very cautious’

Mr. Shinab is among those people who have become sceptical about making a charity donation after being burnt once. “Now I am very cautious about charity videos. I cross check to make sure that they are genuine cases,” he said.

Urging people not to get disheartened by the scam, Mr. Shameer said, “Fake accounts can be distinguished easily by checking the account name and the bank location. A patient in Kerala is unlikely to ask for payment to an account in Maharashtra or Madhya Pradesh.”