Vizag police refund Rs 6 crore to 310 cybercrime victims

Visakhapatnam: The Vizag city police on Monday organised Cyber Crime Victims Refund Mela-3 and returned a total of Rs 6.02 crore to 310 cybercrime victims who were defrauded in the past few months.

Home Minister V Anitha and Vizag city police chief Dr Shankabrata Bagchi handed over the cheques to victims during the mela.Dr Shankabrata Bagchi said Vizag city police refunded around Rs 28.5 crore to over 1,550 citizens who lost money to cyber frauds in the past few years. Earlier editions of the programme had refunded Rs 4.63 crore to 150 victims and Rs 17.83 crore to 1,090 victims, respectively. With this, the police have achieved a milestone by recovering and returning the highest amount of money to cyber-fraud victims in Andhra Pradesh.The police said the recovery process involved coordinated efforts with banks, payment gateways, financial institutions and courts to identify and release frozen funds back to victims.Home minister Anitha said the government was strengthening cybercrime infrastructure and equipping police stations with advanced investigative tools to deal with various trends of cybercrimes . She urged citizens to report cyber fraud immediately through the national helpline 1930 or the cybercrime portal.

Commissioner Bagchi said prompt reporting and close coordination with financial institutions had enabled quicker freezing and recovery of fraudulent transactions. He cautioned the public against responding to suspicious calls, investment offers, and unknown digital links. The police said investment frauds, task-based frauds, digital arrest frauds, loan app harassment, social media impersonation and cryptocurrency-related laundering continued to be major cyber threats in parts of the Vizag city.The police cautioned netizens about the rise in online investment frauds and the frauds linked to illegal loan applications that promise quick loans with minimal documentation but later subject victims to harassment and extortion. Citizens were advised to immediately report cyber fraud on 1930 or via www.cybercrime.gov.in, and to avoid sharing banking credentials, OTPs or personal data with unknown contacts.