This year, a fresh scam is on the rise in India's metropolises, scamming people of their hard-earned money.
Fraudsters posing as police officers or NCRB agents contact people in this new method, known as courier scam, accusing them of engaging in illegal activities involving sending and receiving parcels carrying drugs or other illegal substances.
The scammers then convince the victims that they will be contacted by police, and the entire money extortion racket begins to settle the false complaint against the victims.
The courier scam is primarily targeting people aged 35 to 50, and hundreds of cases have been reported to police this year.
Modus operandi
Courier scammers pose as customs officials and call their victims. They mention a parcel booked in their name and claim that it contained narcotic drugs or other banned substances.
They would then pose as a police officer and speak with them about potential arrest. The victim, who is already terrified, tries to settle the false case by offering money to prevent arrest, which is then transferred to the scammers.
During calls, scammers use psychological tactics to distress victims and collect personal identification and bank details. They ask the victim to provide their Aadhaar number and other identification details, in addition to the bank information, in order to steal money from them.
In other cases, it starts with a missed call. When the person returns the call, they are transferred to an automated voice message informing them that they have reached a courier company's helpline, such as Fedex or Blue Dart.
The other person on the phone then pretends to be a Mumbai police officer, claiming illegal drugs had been discovered in a parcel delivered to their address. The scammer then blackmails the victim into paying.
A Bengaluru resident was recently duped out of Rs 1.52 crore after falling victim to the courier scam. On November 10, Debashish Das, 66, received a phone call from a man claiming to be a FedEx employee named Kartikeya.
Das was then told by the employee that a case had been filed in Mumbai in relation to him after it was discovered that a courier sent to Taiwan under his name had six credit cards, an expired passport, and even 950g of MDMA drugs.
Das was instructed to make a Skype call to the Mumbai cybercrime police station in Andheri. The scammers were able to transfer all of the victim's funds, including his fixed deposits, totaling Rs 1.52 crore to their account after posing as police officers and informing him that bank accounts in his name had been linked to illegal activities.
Prevention tips
- Not providing an OTP, Aadhaar number, bank account information, or any other sensitive data.
- Be wary of unknown callers and those posing as bank, police, or other officials.
- Never return calls from unknown or suspicious numbers.
- Before providing any information, double-check or verify the caller through official sources.
- Avoid clicking on any suspicious links sent via text or WhatsApp.
