GUNTUR: Despite increasing awareness on cybercrimes, people who are eager to do part-time jobs for extra income, are falling prey to cybercriminals and losing huge amounts of money. So far, a total of 76 cybercrimes, including 47 in 2022 and 29 in 2023 till August 29 were reported. These crimes included 36 online cheating cases, 19 cyberstalking, and 21 ATM card fraud cases in the Bapatla district.
Elaborating on the cybercrimes taking place in the district, SP Vakul Jindal informed that many unemployed youths, students and housewives with a lot of spare time are falling prey to these fraudsters to earn extra money through online part-time jobs. “For this purpose, they are ignorantly publishing their personal information on several websites. They are exposing their sensitive data such as bank details, Aadhaar numbers, digital transactions, making it easy for the cybercriminals to commit frauds,” he added.
It is to be recalled that recently a software employee, a resident close to Vetapalem police station limits in Bapatla, lost Rs 10 lakh to cyber fraudsters.
He allegedly responded to a part-time job offered through a WhatsApp message. The hackers had sent him a URL, asking him to click on it, following which they asked him to add it to his online shopping basket, make a deposit of Rs 150, and send a screenshot.
Later, they added him to a Telegram group, where he was given various tasks and the cybercriminals continued to pay modest amounts of money upon finishing the tasks. After gaining his trust, they withdrew Rs 10 lakh from the victim’s account.
In a similar case, a faculty of a college, residing within the limits of Chirala Two Town police station, lost Rs 30 lakh. Taking these cases into consideration, Bapatla police have been educating people about such scams and suggesting people to be more cautious.
“It is vital to thoroughly research the legitimacy of the company by checking the reviews from other employees. Avoid sharing personal details including bank account numbers, Aadhaar cards, and mobile numbers, unless they are certain about the company. People should not fall prey to high-salary jobs for minimal work and avoid clicking on suspicious links or downloading files from unknown sources,” Bapatla SP Vakul Jindal said.