Indians Lost ₹7K Cr to Cyber Frauds From Jan to May, Shows MHA Data

INDIANS LOST AROUND ₹7,000 crore to online scams in the first five months of this year, averaging more than ₹1,000 crore a month, according to estimates of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

- MAHENDER SINGH MANRAL

And more than half of the amount was lost to scamsters operating out of Cambodia and other Southeast Asian countries such as Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos and Thailand.

These scams are often run from high-security locations, believed to be controlled by Chinese operators, where trafficked people, including Indians, are forced to work, according to officials, who cited data compiled by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), a unit under the MHA.

"In January, ₹1,192 crore was lost to scamsters based in Southeast Asian countries, ₹951 crore in February, ₹1,000 crore in March, ₹731 crore in April and ₹999 crore in May," an official said, citing data from the Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS), I4C's facility to help citizens report and manage financial cyber fraud incidents.