KOCHI: It appears that cyber fraudsters are now resorting to using the names of foreign companies to deceive the public and embezzle their money. This comes as an extension of a pattern previously observed with Indian companies. Recently, a resident of Vengola approached the Ernakulam Rural Cyber Police after losing Rs 9.77 lakh to a fraudulent job portal that used the name of a reputable US-based online company.
According to officials from the Ernakulam Rural Cyber Police, the victim received an initial phone call in November last year, which the caller claimed to be from Dicecareer.com. The person introduced himself as Jose and stated that his company was associated with the renowned US job portal, Dice, which specialises in IT sector job placements. “To gain the victim’s trust, he claimed that his company had connections with MNCs both in India and abroad. To establish credibility, the victim was asked to register on the Dicecareer website, which resembled the official US company’s website,” said a police official.
After registration, the accused began sending fake job advertisements using the names of reputable companies. When the victim applied for jobs through Dicecareer.com, the fraudsters demanded security deposits to secure job. The victim was assured that the amount would be refunded. The victim made 17 transactions, totalling Rs 9.77 lakh, to the bank account provided by the fraudsters. However, after failing to secure the promised job, the victim realised that he had been deceived. The accused stopped responding to the victim’s inquiries, leaving him in a state of financial loss.
Police officials revealed that several individuals who fell victim to fraudsters impersonating Dice had reported such incidents on various online forums. “It appears that several fake websites have been created, using the name of the US company. Similar frauds using the names of other foreign companies have also been observed,” the official stated.
In a separate incident, a resident of Kottuvally lost Rs 2.6 lakh after a person posing as a shipping agent promised him a job on a ship. The victim contacted the accused through WhatsApp after seeing a recruitment advertisement on FB. The fraudster claimed to be an agent of a reputable shipping company based in Maharashtra. Initially, the accused demanded Rs 2.6 lakh from the victim to secure the job. The fraudster then asked for an additional Rs 1 lakh. “The victim patiently waited for five months, but nothing happened. After persistent demands, Rs 1 lakh was eventually returned,” said an official.