Tarun Karthick
Port Blair, 07 August 2024
A resident of Namunaghar, Port Blair, has reported being a victim of an elaborate online financial fraud scheme. The Victim, a homemaker, has filed an FIR with the Cyber Crime Police Station, detailing her unfortunate experience.
In a letter to the Station House Officer, the victim recounted how the incident unfolded. On June 14, 2024, she received a message from an unknown WhatsApp number, offering a work-from-home opportunity. The job involved rating hotels and restaurants with 5-star reviews, for which she would be paid Rs 150 for every three tasks completed. Trusting the offer, the victim rated the hotels and sent screenshots as proof. She then received instructions to contact someone on telegram. The victim was asked by the telegram user to furnish her bank details.
The victim provided her bank details and received Rs 150 in her Canara Bank account from a bank account. Encouraged by this initial transaction, she continued with more tasks assigned through a portal skillbytevf.top, where she was asked to get herself registered. She also received an amount of Rs. 1650 and Rs. 7800 in her bank account for completing tasks on the portal. The victim further completed tasks assigned to her on the portal to earn more money. Her balance on the portal grew to Rs 1,95,000, but was informed she needed to pay 40 percent tax to receive the amount.
In multiple transactions from her Canara Bank account, the victim paid Rs 1,30,000 to the fraudsters.
Despite making these payments, the promised amount was never credited to her account. Realising she had been scammed, the victim lodged a formal complaint on the National Crime Reporting Portal on June 19, 2024.