Now Reading: Fake customs official, supervisor email dupe IIT researchers of Rs 3.12 lakh
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Fake customs official, supervisor email dupe IIT researchers of Rs 3.12 lakh
Fake customs official, supervisor email dupe IIT researchers of Rs 3.12 lakh
Two researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore lost a total of Rs 3.12 lakh to separate cyber frauds in August. Simrol police have registered cases under sections 318(4) and…
Two researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore lost a total of Rs 3.12 lakh to separate cyber frauds in August. Simrol police have registered cases under sections 318(4) and 319(2) of the BNS against unidentified suspects and are investigating the digital trails.
On August 10, researcher Sangeeta, 33, received a call from someone posing as an airport customs official who claimed she had an international parcel. Trusting the caller because she often receives packages from abroad, she transferred Rs 35,999 as customs charges via PhonePe. The fraudster then demanded more money as endorsement and exchange fees, pressuring her to send funds from her own account, her brother's and a friend's. When asked for another Rs 3.5 lakh, she refused, realising she had been cheated of Rs 2,82,999. She reported the incident to the 1930 national cyber helpline.
On August 19, researcher Buddhadev Ghosh from Howrah, West Bengal, received a fake email from [email protected]. The sender pretended to be his project supervisor and asked him to urgently buy Amazon and Steam gift wallet codes. Ghosh bought and sent codes worth Rs 15,000, then another Rs 15,000 after a follow-up request. He later checked the email address and realised it was a scam, having lost Rs 30,000.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Cyber frauds targeting academics at premier institutes are rising as scammers exploit trust in official communications. IIT researchers frequently deal with international parcels and supervisor emails, making them vulnerable. The national cyber helpline (1930) provides a first response, but recovery depends on swift blocking of digital payments. Police in Indore have not yet reported any arrests. The next step for both victims is tracking money trails through bank and payment app records to identify the fraudsters.
Source: freepressjournal.in
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
