WhatsApp Missed Call Job Scam and Sextortion Racket Targeting Mumbai Victims.
According to police and cyber specialists, a slew of missed WhatsApp calls from international numbers are likely to be part of an employment scam via cyber fraud that has afflicted several people in Mumbai and across the country in recent weeks.
Officials claim that the victims were promised “work from home” professions that involved “liking” particular things online and were eventually tricked. In certain cases, in addition to WhatsApp phone calls, people received video calls, which investigators believe are related to a sextortion ring. So far, no official complaint has been filed with the Mumbai police department. “We suspect this is a combination of two scams,” DCP (cyber) Balsingh Rajput told The Indian Express. In the event that WhatsApp calls are made from international numbers, it is likely part of the job scam where people are offered lucrative work from home offers and are eventually conned. In cases of video calls, we suspect it could be the case of sextortion.”
“So far, we have not received any formal complaint in the matter from anyone who has lost money as a result of receiving these calls,” the officer stated. However, many people across the country, particularly in Mumbai, have gone to social media sites like Twitter to complain about missing calls on WhatsApp from numbers in countries such as Vietnam, Bali, and Ghana. Many consumers reported receiving three to four calls every day from these international phone numbers. Some people have reported receiving video calls as well.
According to cyber expert Ritesh Bhatia, the missed calls are a continuation of the “work from home” scam, in which victims are encouraged to perform simple tasks such as specific products or videos on websites and are guaranteed Rs. 150 initially.
The accused made a handful of minor payments to gain the trust of the victims. Later, they would inform the victim that they are due to receive a large sum of money but must first make a payment. According to Bhatia, the accused took lakhs of rupees from victims over a period of time before they went missing. “Previously, the cyber criminals would send messages in this scam.” They are now returning missed calls. Those who phone back receive messages from them pretending to be from the HR department of some organization, offering them money to like their items online and finally duping them,” Bhatia said, adding that the foreign lines could be Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) numbers that can be easily obtained online. The calls are not always made from the nation represented by the caller code. When the victim answers a video call, the accused immediately plays an obscene tape. They then capture the victim gazing at the filthy video — even if only for a few seconds — and send the footage to the victim, demanding money if the video is not made public, according to Bhatia.
