Hyderabad: 40-year-old woman placed under ‘digital arrest’, duped of Rs 8 lakh

According to the police, the woman received a call from an individual, who claimed to be a TRAI agent, and informed that her phone number was linked to a police case, related to online harassment, booked in Mumbai.

Hyderabad: A 40-year-old woman from Hyderabad became the latest victim of ‘Digital Arrest’ scam when she was duped to the tune of Rs 8 lakh by cyber fraudsters, who allegedly posed as Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) agents.

According to the police, the woman received a call from an individual, who claimed to be a TRAI agent, and informed that her phone number was linked to a police case, related to online harassment, booked in Mumbai.

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When the woman confronted the caller by stating that she was in Hyderabad and never been to Mumbai, the scammer threatened to deactivate her mobile number and warned that Hyderabad police would arrest her.

The fraudster claimed that eight bank accounts had been opened under her name across India and threatened that her bank transactions were found to be illegal. He claimed that she has been digitally arrested and warned her not to disconnect the call, citing a life threat.

The scammers pressured the victim into transferring funds from her account into their account. Following their instructions, she transferred a total of Rs 8 lakh. After realizing that she had been scammed, the victim filed a complaint with the Hyderabad Cybercrime police, who booked a case and are investigating.