The government blocked 1,700 Skype IDs and 59,000 WhatsApp accounts that were used to commit digital arrest fraud.

According to police authorities, as of November 15, the government had blocked 1.32 lakh IMEIs and over 6.69 lakh SIM cards. "The central government and Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) have developed a system to identify and block incoming international spoof calls in order to improve the mechanism for addressing cyber crimes, including digital fraud," stated Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar.

Cyber News Dec 4, 2024 0 73 Add to Reading List

The government blocked 1,700 Skype IDs and 59,000 WhatsApp accounts that were used to commit digital arrest fraud.

The Lok Sabha was notified on Tuesday that the Ministry of Home Affairs' Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) had found and blacklisted 59,000 WhatsApp accounts and over 1,700 Skype IDs that were being exploited for online fraud. In addition, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar said that the 'Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System,' which was introduced under the I4C in 2021, allows for the prompt reporting of financial frauds in order to stop fraudsters from embezzling money, and that more than 9.94 lakh complaints have saved more than Rs 3,431 crore to date.

In answer to a written query, Kumar stated, "The I4C has proactively identified and blocked more than 1,700 Skype IDs and 59,000 WhatsApp accounts used for digital fraud."

According to police authorities, the government had blocked 1.32 lakh IMEIs and over 6.69 lakh SIM cards as of November 15, 2024.

The minister added that the central government and telecom service providers (TSPs) have created a system to detect and block incoming international spoof calls that display Indian mobile numbers, giving the impression that they are coming from within India, in order to improve the mechanism for combating cybercrimes, including digital fraud.

According to Kumar, cybercriminals have recently exploited these counterfeit calls in FedEx frauds, impersonation, and fictitious digital arrests.

TSPs have received instructions to stop these incoming international fake calls. In order to guarantee prompt action and smooth collaboration in combating cybercrime, I4C has also established a State-of-the-Art Cyber Fraud Mitigation Centre (CFMC), where representatives from major banks, financial institutions, payment aggregators, TSPs, IT intermediaries, and law enforcement agencies from States and UTs work together.