The Cyber Crime branch here recovered ₹18,000 lost by a Pennagaram man over a fraudulent customer care helpline number within 48 hours of the complaint.
The complaint was lodged online by R. Karthik of Paaparapatti in Pennagaram. According to the complainant, his account was debited with ₹2,000 without his consent. Following this, he scouted for the customer care number to raise a complaint. However, he was led to a fraudulent customer care number, wherein Karthik was asked to install Anydesk App.
Upon installation, Karthik’s phone received an OTP, which Karthik had shared with the accused. Soon after, Karthik’s account was debited with ₹18,000.
A Cyber Crime branch official said, upon receipt of the complaint, they looked through the bank transaction record of Karthik, which pointed to an online purchase of a projector.
They immediately contacted the legal officer of the online portal and asked for cancellation of the product. Upon cancellation, the money was refunded to the account of the complainant.
The public should be vigilant of scam calls. Any complaint may be lodged online via www.cybercrime.gov.in or alternatively on 1930, according to Additional Superintendent of Police, Cyber Crime, S. Pushparaj.
