Around this time last year, The Hindu ran an exhaustive story about fake social media profiles created by fraudsters in the name of Kerala youths. It wrote: “Data entry work, now being touted as one of the easiest work-from-home job options for housewives, continues to be the biggest clickbait in the virtual space.”
The South appeared notorious for the creation of fake digital profiles, with Telangana recording the highest number of such cases — approximately 37 registered with the authorities — in 2021, according to The Statista.
India recorded nearly 123 such cases that year, it added.
Last year, The Times of India reported that police from the Cyber Economic and Narcotics Crime Unit arrested a youth, who would deceive people by creating a fake account in the name of a girl on social media platforms. Police reportedly traced cash transactions worth Rs 19 lakh in six different bank accounts.
Nowadays, it’s common to see such messages from unfamiliar people on our WhatsApp accounts, enticing us with quick-money offers or job prospects, none of which, of course, are credible.
With a lack of a strong legal framework to deal with such cases, fake social media profiles are becoming a chronic menace to our society.
Now, Gujarat is witnessing a rise in social media imitations, with distinguished personalities like IAS, IPS officials and doctors facing this issue.
Since the civil lists of IAS (Indian Administrative Services) and IPS (Indian Police Service) officials are available online, they target popular accounts using original pictures to create fake ones.
A city-based tabloid has reported that the cybercrime unit has blocked 53 such counterfeit accounts.
Citing an example, it said that cyber crooks targeted Vikrant Pandey, a 2005 batch IAS officer, now serving as Director in the Inter Council Secretariat (MHA), by impersonating his Facebook account. Arun Mahesh Babu, a 2013 batch IAS officer, is their latest victim.
“Prominent figures like former CS and 1986 batch IAS officer Pankaj Kumar, Rajiv Kumar Gupta of the Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation, and Bhargavi Dave from the Gujarat State Human Rights Commission have had their accounts duplicated. Not just them, even renowned doctors’ accounts have been targeted,” a senior official from the cybercrime unit was quoted as saying.
A top official from the cybercrime cell told the tabloid, “Many culprits were minors. The adults, however, would scan the friend list of the impersonated account, seeking financial aid. In one instance, a scammer, posing as a senior IAS officer on Instagram, sent multiple requests asking for Rs 1,000 from the officer’s contacts.”
These cybercriminals go to the extent of sending friend requests, enticing their targets to follow them on various platforms. “We’ve identified these culprits and will soon take action. For now, we’ve blocked these fake accounts to prevent further damage,” a cybercrime official told the tabloid.
Most fake accounts ask for money for medical emergencies, even sending QR codes for payment.
Around this time last year, The Hindu ran an exhaustive story about fake social media profiles created by fraudsters in the name of Kerala youths. It wrote: “Data entry work, now being touted as one of the easiest work-from-home job options for housewives, continues to be the biggest clickbait in the virtual space.”
The South appeared notorious for the creation of fake digital profiles, with Telangana recording the highest number of such cases — approximately 37 registered with the authorities — in 2021, according to The Statista.
India recorded nearly 123 such cases that year, it added.
Last year, The Times of India reported that police from the Cyber Economic and Narcotics Crime Unit arrested a youth, who would deceive people by creating a fake account in the name of a girl on social media platforms. Police reportedly traced cash transactions worth Rs 19 lakh in six different bank accounts.
Nowadays, it’s common to see such messages from unfamiliar people on our WhatsApp accounts, enticing us with quick-money offers or job prospects, none of which, of course, are credible.
With a lack of a strong legal framework to deal with such cases, fake social media profiles are becoming a chronic menace to our society.
Now, Gujarat is witnessing a rise in social media imitations, with distinguished personalities like IAS, IPS officials and doctors facing this issue.
Since the civil lists of IAS (Indian Administrative Services) and IPS (Indian Police Service) officials are available online, they target popular accounts using original pictures to create fake ones.
A city-based tabloid has reported that the cybercrime unit has blocked 53 such counterfeit accounts.
Citing an example, it said that cyber crooks targeted Vikrant Pandey, a 2005 batch IAS officer, now serving as Director in the Inter Council Secretariat (MHA), by impersonating his Facebook account. Arun Mahesh Babu, a 2013 batch IAS officer, is their latest victim.
“Prominent figures like former CS and 1986 batch IAS officer Pankaj Kumar, Rajiv Kumar Gupta of the Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation, and Bhargavi Dave from the Gujarat State Human Rights Commission have had their accounts duplicated. Not just them, even renowned doctors’ accounts have been targeted,” a senior official from the cybercrime unit was quoted as saying.
A top official from the cybercrime cell told the tabloid, “Many culprits were minors. The adults, however, would scan the friend list of the impersonated account, seeking financial aid. In one instance, a scammer, posing as a senior IAS officer on Instagram, sent multiple requests asking for Rs 1,000 from the officer’s contacts.”
These cybercriminals go to the extent of sending friend requests, enticing their targets to follow them on various platforms. “We’ve identified these culprits and will soon take action. For now, we’ve blocked these fake accounts to prevent further damage,” a cybercrime official told the tabloid.
Most fake accounts ask for money for medical emergencies, even sending QR codes for payment.
Also Read: 5,000 Ahmedabad Industries Get Notice For Poor Effluent Management
