CYBER FRAUDS: NEW PLATFORMS AND ASSORTED ROUTES

Digital arrests are their latest route to frighten people by threatening and blackmailing. Video conferencing does all this against innocent people.

- P. V. LAXMIPRASAD

In today's digital-centric world, cyber security remains an essential force to reckon with. Just when we have cybersecurity which promises protection to individuals and organizations against spammers, online crimes and scams, the cybercriminals have strategically indulged in nefarious activities by calling, messaging, and video calling. Such illegal incidents have become almost an everyday activity. They use online mode and cheat people at an alarming pace. They threaten the public using all means of tactics and put them in a sort of fear psychosis. The victims include the educated section of the lot. Among the victims were Civil Servants and others. The high numbers of fraud and scams perpetrated online have become most common every day. Print and electronic media have alerted the public against online fraud. The fraudsters target everybody. With the advancement of technology, the sophistication of scams has also increased. The banks and other organizations have continuously reminded the customers of digital safety practices, including exercising caution when sharing personal information such as Aadhar Card nos, Bank details, User names, passwords, and OTPs. New tracks are added to these attempts by using assorted routes. These online frauds are hitting the news headlines every day. They are using new methods to drag people into such scams and frauds. If one notices these developments in the last few months, these online criminals are adopting new ways in cheating gullible people. AI-manipulated voices, images and audio now replace emails and messages. 'Parcels that contain banned goods' are a new plot of secret operation by online criminals to frighten people. They adopt different conspiracies to target people using excellent communication. They give the impression of being genuine. Fraudsters are posing as CBI or IT officials and may threaten legal action or heavy fines to extort money from people.