The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has frozen Rs 110 crore and seized 1,200 mule credit cards following searches against the Indian operations of Parimatch, a Cyprus-based online betting platform, for alleged money laundering and cheating investors.
The CBI has filed a chargesheet against a man accused of defrauding a retired banker of Rs 23 crore in a sophisticated digital arrest scam involving impersonation of law enforcement and judicial authorities.
A 28-year-old man from Ghaziabad has been arrested for allegedly defrauding a Delhi woman of over Rs 1.51 lakh under the guise of a job application scam.
Five individuals, including an electronic repair shop owner and a DJ operator, have been arrested for allegedly defrauding a 78-year-old Delhi resident of over Rs 2.19 crore through a sophisticated cyber fraud involving impersonation of law enforcement officials and a 'digital arrest'.
The proposed solution is a one-hour delay for digital transactions exceeding Rs 10,000, particularly when the transfer is made to a new or unverified beneficiary. The idea is simple -- give users a window to reconsider, detect fraud or alert their bank before the funds are irretrievably transferred.
Telangana's anti-narcotics wing, the EAGLE Force, conducted a multi-state operation against a Nigerian drug cartel, resulting in over 50 arrests and the seizure of narcotics worth Rs 3.5 crore.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed new measures to combat financial fraud in digital payments, including lagged credit for authorised push payments and a 'kill switch' for users to disable all digital transactions.
The Supreme Court has expressed serious concerns about the rise in digital fraud, particularly digital arrest scams, and has directed the central government to develop a standard operating procedure to combat these crimes.
Delhi Police have arrested six individuals linked to interstate cybercrime syndicates involved in digital arrest, fake IPO, and trading scams, recovering millions of rupees.
It said that when a retiree, who withdraws amounts in the range of Rs 10,000 or Rs 20,000, suddenly withdraws huge amounts, then the bank should issue an alert.
Mirroring the traditional hawala system, where money is sent through non-banking channels, this digital version uses the anonymity of unregulated cryptocurrency to erase the financial trail and inject cash into the domestic economy.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police's Counter Intelligence Wing (CIK) has dismantled a sophisticated international cyber fraud racket, arresting seven individuals in Srinagar. The operation targeted victims in the USA, UK, and Canada, using advanced techniques to steal funds through deceptive online schemes.
Delhi Police have arrested a man from Maharashtra for allegedly cheating a Delhi resident of Rs 9.25 lakh on the pretext of arranging a visa and overseas job.
A man was arrested in Gujarat for allegedly receiving a significant portion of Rs 3.71 crore siphoned off from a Mumbai woman in a 'digital arrest' scam. The cybercriminals impersonated law enforcement and court officials, staging a fake online hearing to deceive the victim.
Cyber fraudsters have duped Delhi residents of nearly Rs 1,000 crore so far this year, with investment scams, digital arrests and boss scams emerging as the most common cybercrimes.
The Indian government is integrating artificial intelligence into the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS) 2.0 to enhance crime tracking, criminal profiling, and predictive policing across the country.
By enabling real-time data sharing, the platform will help prevent scams and ensure secure transactions.
The Supreme Court has directed the government to raise awareness, compensate, and protect vulnerable individuals who have lost money in cyber scams. The court's remarks came while granting bail to an accused in a cybercrime case, emphasizing the need for public education and cybersecurity awareness.
The Supreme Court has directed the CBI to conduct a pan-India investigation into digital arrest scams and questioned the RBI about its lack of AI usage in detecting and freezing accounts used by cybercriminals.
Gujarat police arrest a woman allegedly involved in trafficking job aspirants to Myanmar and Thailand for cyber slavery. The accused lured people with promises of high-paying jobs and forced them to work for international cyber crime syndicates.
'Just like oral hygiene, cyber hygiene must become a daily habit,' says Beena Vaheed, executive director, Bank of Baroda. 'It is not enough to rely only on banks, companies, or the government. Each of us must play our part.'
'The larger and more opaque this shadow economy becomes, especially online, the greater the risk to India's national security.'
Delhi Police have dismantled three multi-state cyber fraud networks involved in online investment scams, fake trading applications, and KYC fraud, leading to the arrest of three key individuals.
Two chartered accountants have been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a money laundering case linked to a cyber fraud involving Rs 641 crore.
The agency also ran a parallel investigation into cyber-slavery and the organised digital exploitation networks in Southeast Asia, with slave compounds in Myanmar and neighbouring areas, that are emerging as incubators for the execution of such frauds.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has accused Karnataka Congress MLA K C Veerendra of collecting over Rs 2,000 crore through online betting sites. The agency alleges that Veerendra and his associates used various gateways and fintech service providers to mask their illicit activities.
The raids were linked to a sophisticated organised investment fraud scheme targeting unsuspecting individuals through fake mobile apps and WhatsApp groups.
The relation between a regulator and its regulated entities is collaborative and not adversarial with the common objective of maintaining the stability and credibility of the financial system. However, the action on regulated entities like penalties and business restrictions are the last resort, Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Friday.
Mumbai police have arrested six individuals from Gujarat, dismantling an interstate cyber fraud gang involved in digital arrest scams, including one where a businessman was defrauded of Rs 58 crore.
The money mule scam has reached Indian shores. Banks have noticed instances of fraudsters based overseas, posing as global payment companies, luring gullible people into joining them as "money transfer agents" and using their bank accounts to route ill-gotten money.
The number of cyberfraud cases has skyrocketed from 2,677 in 1999-2000 to 29,082 in FY24 -- more than a 10-fold increase. The RBI pegs digital payment frauds at Rs 1,457 crore in FY24, up more than five times in a year. It's not just the number of frauds. What's alarming is the growing sophistication of the fraudsters, exposing the vulnerabilities within the financial system, observes Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
'The central bank has highlighted that the slowdown in growth has been limited to a few sectors and overall growth is expected to pick up in the second half of the year.'
Viresh Joshi, a former chief trader and fund manager of Axis Mutual Fund, has been arrested under the anti-money laundering law in a case linked to alleged cheating of investors to the tune of Rs 200 crore by 'front-running' in trade activities, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Sunday.
Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Wednesday exhorted the fledgling fintech ecosystem to focus on the underserved sections of the society to deepen financial inclusion. Speaking at the annual Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai, Malhotra accepted that serving the "privileged" will be a lucrative business, but urged the smaller companies to focus on the underserved.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids at multiple locations in Maharashtra and Gujarat as part of a money laundering investigation targeting a Malegaon-based trader suspected of misusing bank accounts to carry out transactions exceeding Rs 100 crore. The probe is linked to an FIR filed by Malegaon Police against Siraj Ahmed Harun Meman, who operates a tea and cold drinks agency, for allegedly misusing bank accounts for illegal transactions. The ED suspects the trader may have been using the funds to divert and route money for certain individuals by misusing the banking credentials of ordinary citizens. The possibility of electoral malpractice being involved is also under scrutiny.
A chargesheet filed by Andhra Pradesh police alleges former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy chaired a meeting related to a new liquor policy under which outlets would be run by a government entity. The chargesheet details alleged kickbacks and money laundering.
In 2023-2024, 95 scheduled commercial banks received over 10 million complaints from their customers. The process of KYC at many banks has become 'HYC' -- harass your customer, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
'We found certain banks having lakhs of such accounts with apparently no valid reason.'
India Inc, which is sitting on cash balances of 13.5 trillion, is using the funds to meet capital expenditure as well as brownfield expansion, resulting in 'anaemic' demand for bank loans, State Bank of India (SBI) chairman CS Setty said at an event on Monday. He added that a slowdown in corporate credit is mainly due to lack of demand.
Risk assessment platforms are increasingly using diverse data sources to help lenders identify groups attempting to access credit from regulated entities and to improve the process of evaluating new-to-credit (NTC) users.
