THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The cyber division of the state police has blacklisted more than 22,000 smartphones involved in cyber fraud and rendered them inoperable in the past year, amid a surge in cyber financial crimes that have resulted in losses amounting to millions of rupees in the state.
The phones were locked by the Department of Telecom (DoT) at the request of the cyber division by blacklisting the IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity), which is unique for each mobile phone.
As many as 13,000 SIM cards used for fraudulent activities were also blocked during the same period.
Police sources said the phones that were rendered unusable were the ones that were verified to be used to commit cyber fraud. After verification, the IMEI details of the phones are sent to the DoT, which conducts a checking on its own before blacklisting the devices permanently. Once the IMEI is blacklisted, the device cannot be connected to any network, rendering them useless as a communication device.
According to a source, initially, fraudsters used high-end smartphones for cyber fraud. “But with the IMEI blacklisting becoming a prevalent mode of anti-cyber fraud operation, the cybercriminals are now using low-end phones, knowing well that their devices could get locked,” the source said.
Though there are options to get the device unlocked by spoofing the IMEI, the cops said it was technically challenging, and hence, scammers rarely resort to such methods.
Blocking SIM cards and locking phones have a deterrent effect on scammers: Cops
The state police, however, had no data on the number of phones operated from Kerala that were blacklisted. The Union government documents revealed that around 4,800 mobile phones that operated in Kerala were blacklisted from January 2023 to May 2024. During this period, around `800 crore was swindled from the state by cyber fraudsters.
A cyber division official said blocking SIM cards and locking phones have a deterrent effect on the scammers. “Without a smartphone and SIM card, they cannot pull off the scam.
They need to make calls and engage with their victims on social media platforms. By keeping a tight leash on illegal sale and use of SIM cards and blocking phones, we can contain the scammers to an extent,” the official added.