HYDERABAD: Punjagutta police on Wednesday arrested three persons, including the CEO, associated with Jaipur-based IGS Digital Call Centre for allegedly perpetrating a countrywide cyber fraud. A total of 34 complaints have been lodged on the National Cybercrime Portal against the firm for purportedly luring unsuspecting customers with 300 free digital services but later extracting money under the guise of ‘registration fees’.
The police believe there could be more victims in the case and urged them to file complaints. They are still trying to determine the extent of money illegally accrued from victims.
Modus operandi
According to the cops, a Punjagutta resident lodged a complaint stating that a telecaller phoned him offering a Union government initiative, under which he could avail of 300 online services for free. When he showed interest, the caller interjected, saying that he would need to pay a registration fee of Rs 1,800. After the payment, the caller said the ID could not be activated owing to an error in KYC activation, the police added.
Subsequently, the caller advised him to register for a distribution ID, enabling him to earn commissions, for another Rs 4,040, they said. Once again, the Punjagutta resident was told that there was a KYC error and the caller asked him to pay another Rs 30,000, the cops said.
This aroused his suspicion and when he started demanding his money back, the telecaller stopped responding, forcing him to drop by the firm’s office near the Lifestyle building in Begumpet. He picked up an argument with the HR personnel, who told him that they only provided five services and asserted that his money would not be refunded, the police said. Based on the complaint, a case was registered at the Punjagutta police station.
Role of telecallers?
The accused were identified as CEO Prateek Chauvey, who is also the director, human resources head of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh Dasari Swarnalatha and a mediator, Shravan Lal Sharma, who allegedly threatened and blackmailed victims. The police will now look into the role of the telecallers and take action against them based on their role and knowledge of the alleged fraud. It is yet to be ascertained if they were aware of the wrongdoings or were lured in the name of salaries, a source said.
The firm, IGS Digital Centre Limited, headquartered in Jaipur, Rajasthan, established a branch in White House, Begumpet, employing approximately 30 telecallers. They posted advertisements promising opportunities to earn extra income and work from home. The company claims to offer a wide range of services, including domestic money transfer, bill payments, CA services, travel bookings, Aadhaar-enabled payment system (AEPS), PAN card services, express payout, bill payment system, website design and portal services, micro ATM services, legal and IT services, biometric verification and various others. However, these services exist only on paper, the police said.
Upon application, victims provide their details, subsequently receiving calls luring them into making payments in the guise of Union government offers.
Upon downloading the application from the Google Play Store, the victims discover that the services offered are either nonexistent or freely available, despite having been charged, they mentioned. To encourage downloads, the company falsely promises victims commissions of 30%–40% on amounts transferred using their services, the cops added.