The incidents of digital arrest have increased rapidly these days. Despite the warnings of the central government and the agency, people are getting trapped in the trap of hackers. Recently, the government has blocked 17,000 WhatsApp numbers in this matter. This new case of digital arrest is very shocking, in which not a common man but a student studying at IIT Bombay has been cheated. This case is also scary because if such a fraud can be done with a student of the country's most premium technology institute, then a common man will easily get trapped in the trap of scammers.

How did the fraud happen?

A 25-year-old student studying at IIT Bombay received a call from an unknown number in which the scammer introduced himself as an officer of TRAI i.e. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. The scammers posing as TRAI officers told the student that a complaint of illegal activity had been received from his number, due to which his number would be deactivated. If he wants to keep his number active, then he will have to get a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the police. Meanwhile, the hacker posing asa  TRAI officer transferred the student's call to a fake cyber crime branch.

In the video call, the student saw a young man in a police uniform. Before the student could understand anything, the scammer on the call accused him of money laundering. He was asked for his Aadhaar number and asked to send Rs 29,500 to UPI to avoid arrest. The young man is pressurized and is told that he has been digitally arrested. In return, more money is demanded. Also, he is told that he will not contact anyone during this time. 

Fearing arrest and defamation, the youth gives his bank details to the hackers, through which Rs 7.29 lakh is transferred. After the call gets disconnected, the youth searches for digital arrest on Google, and then he realizes that he has been scammed.

How to avoid it?

The incident of digital arrest has become common these days. To avoid this, first of all, you have to ignore calls coming fromany unknown number. Many times hackers use deepfake videos and AI-generated voices to make you feel that you are talking to the right person. In such a situation, you have to keep your mind calm and there is no need to panic at all. Many times people believe everything the hackers say due to fear of defamation and a big fraud happens with them.

Recently, PM Modi has also taken digital arrest seriously and has instructed to take strict measures. Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and TRAI keep warning people through their social media handles and SMS to avoid digital arrest. Hackers cheat people by taking advantage of social engineering and fear of people. Only the alertness of people can save them from digital arrest.