THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: When an aided school teacher from Thiruvananthapuram came across a promising message offering good returns for simple online tasks, she fell into the trap without hesitation. The scheme required her to pay a small upfront fee to register for the job, where she would earn Rs 150 for each click on videos on a video-sharing platform.
As she continued to receive remuneration for her work, her trust in the “like and earn” scheme grew, and she started investing more money to get “rewarding tasks” and additional benefits. However, unbeknownst to her, she was one among hundreds of people in the state falling victim to online scammers, resulting in a loss of Rs 30 lakh.
Kerala has witnessed a surge in online fraud, with 300 people being defrauded in the last two months, amounting to a collective loss of Rs 4 crore. The scammers’ modus operandi is similar in most cases. They initially provide remuneration to gain the victim’s trust, then coax them into loading money to access more tasks. Although the remuneration is shown in the victims’ e-wallets, they cannot withdraw it. When the victims complain, the scammers delete their portals and disappear.
According to Cyber Crimes SP Hari Sankar, scammers have become more sophisticated in their tactics and are targeting more victims. “We are seeing a spurt in such cases. The scammers are resorting to new ways to con people,” he said. Both genders and all age groups have fallen victim to these scams. The scammers have evolved their techniques, moving away from traditional OTP frauds and engaging in task-based work frauds and trading frauds, he added.
In trading fraud, scammers promote the purchase and resale of commodities through fake portals. Customers pay for goods on the portal, intending to resell them at a higher price, but they are unable to withdraw the money shown in their e-wallets.
“The person who initially brought the goods is cheated. The one who brought it from the initial buyer is also cheated. We have received several such complaints,” said an officer.
The average amount lost in each case is Rs 1 lakh and above, affecting the victims significantly. According to DySP P P Karunakaran, SHO of the Cyber Station in Thiruvananthapuram, the victims were all well-educated.
“We had chartered accountants, MBA holders, and MCA graduates who were siphoned off their hard-earned money. Despite their educational qualifications, many of them do not realise that they are flirting with danger while engaging with these scammers,” he said.
Huge surge