Don’t let cyber scammers take control of your mind, Noida police commissioner says at TOI Townhall

Cybercrime is rising so exponentially that it will become the single biggest law and order problem for cops across India, Noida police commissioner Laxmi Singh said at TOI's first ‘Don'tGetScammed' Townhall in the city.

Speaking at a packed hall inside Supertech Capetown on Saturday, with bureaucrats, techies, bankers, engineers, school-going children and retired professionals in the audience, Singh pointed out that the battle against cybercrime is won or lost in the mind.


Don't let panic suspend logic. Don't let a bizarre allegation being thrown at you manipulate you. And foremost, disconnect that call, was the CP's message as she spoke about ‘digital arrest' scams wreaking havoc on many families by sweeping all their bank savings.

"No agency in India or globally has the power to arrest people over the internet," Singh said during the event at the Sector 74 condominium, referring to fraudsters impersonating police officers to con people.

"Indian police is still backward in the sense that if officials want to nab someone, they will go to that person's house and detain them physically," Singh joked. "Officials do not use Internet or Skype to capture suspects. No law enforcement agency is so advanced that it can nab you from Internet. If you get video calls from people who are accusing you of crimes, please disconnect those calls. If you missed paying taxes, or tried to save on them, or attempted anything that could be illegal, the I-T department will take action. No agency will put you on a video call to talk about it," she said.

Speaking about the psychological aspect of cybercrime, she added, "No person should be able to access your mind and torture you with a threat."

She also spoke about scams in which people are called and told parcels containing drugs have been found in their name. "If you have no relatives in foreign countries, why would anyone send a parcel in your name? If you do have relatives abroad, call them first and ask if they sent anything for you. The fact is, no one would send such a parcel. These are all tactics to create fear," the CP said.

While the nature of scams, she warned, is constantly evolving, the fraud that is among the most common to come up before police involves KYC. "Most frauds occur when fraudsters claim to update KYC. Don't use middlemen to get KYC done. Do it directly at banks. If you are sent KYC links and find them suspicious, check with your bank first. Consult your bank on the dos and don'ts of KYC," she added.

Singh also urged the audience to report suspicious messages that masquerade as communique from banks. "Scams are now also aiding anti-national activities. Dubious call centres are being run from countries far away from our borders. Therefore, it is imperative to fight them as a nation united. We require citizens' cooperation in combating cybercrime," she said.

Stressing the need to report cybercrime at the earliest, the CP said the ‘golden window' is when the authorities have the best chance to stop or reverse transactions or at least recover a part of the stolen money. "Once a cybercrime has been committed, approach us or the national helpline 1930 created by the ministry of home affairs and IT department. If you approach us during the golden window, there will be no time for them to withdraw the money or convert it into cryptocurrency. The problem with cryptocurrency is that it is difficult to track it beyond the first transaction. E-wallets the money gets parked in may also be beyond Indian frontiers," she added.

Giving examples of how many retired individuals come forward to complain about scams, she said though police want to help them, in many cases they are only able to recover small amounts because of delay in reporting the crime. "The fact is, many of them approach police after a month or so of the scam occurring, by which time the money has already been withdrawn or spent," she said.

The CP requested participants at the town hall to help share information to prevent cybercrime with as many people as possible.

She also said police will also engage in more dialogues with RWAs and AOAs to strengthen awareness in society.

"People can only scam you if you are willing to be defrauded. If you are of sound mind, think logically, and remain calm, you will not fall for such crimes," was the message with which she concluded the session.