With advancement of technology, man has become dependent on Internet for all his day-to-day needs. From online shopping, online bill payment, online travel booking, online jobs, gaming, online courses etc., we use internet for each and every possible thing. But the internet also has its own security risks as hackers and cyber criminals are always looking for opportunities to exploit innocent users for various malicious purposes. Hence, you should always stay alert and learn how to safeguard yourself online from such cyber threats.
Growing Financial Cybercrime in India
Financial cybercrime in India has been growing steadily over the last few years. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reported more than 16,468 cybercrimes related to ATM, debit card, credit card and net banking frauds for the year 2015-16. Hackers are currently using novel techniques like ransomware to steal money from innocent users. One such financial cybercrime was reported on Thursday by a Ludhiana-based businessman who got ripped off his bank account by a group of hackers that have stolen more than $100,000.
Ludhiana Businessman
Arun Beri, a businessman who runs a garment factory in Ludhiana, Punjab was a victim of this cybercrime incident and had lost approximately 70 lakh rupees from his bank account. The hackers have transferred this money to 5 different accounts held by some random people. DCP Dhruman Nimble who is handling this case told the media that different sections of IT Act and the IPC were registered on Wednesday following the complaint from the businessman.
The victim informed the police soon after he received emails regarding the transactions during the early hours of July 18. He was not able to receive any SMS alerts on his mobile since his number was suspended by the service provider. The hackers have cunningly issued a request for a duplicate SIM of the victim’s mobile number without his knowledge. Hence, his actual SIM got deactivated because of which he was not able to receive instant SMS alerts for the transactions done by the hackers. The victim informed the police officials that hackers got a duplicate SIM for a local mobile dealer by submitting a letter that the original SIM was lost. The hackers have cleverly used social engineering techniques to steal all the confidential information from the businessman.
Also, there is a suspicion that some bank employee could also be involved in this fraud. Since the businessman had set a withdrawal limit in his account of 5 lakh rupees per day, it could not be possible to transfer Rs. 70 lakhs from the same account without help from a bank employee. So, it clearly indicates that some bank employee was also involved in this cybercrime incident. With more and more cybercrime incidents happening in India, it’s really important for users to stay aware and use proper security tools to protect them from such cyber threats.