Prime Minister Narendra Modi cautioned Indian citizens against ‘Digital Arrest’ scams in his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ address to the nation.
“The fraudsters of Digital Arrest phone calls, at times, impersonate as Police, CBI, Narcotics; at times RBI (Reserve Bank of India)... using such various labels, they converse as fake officers with a lot of confidence,” Modi said.
The prime minister said these fraud gangs collect all personal information of their victims to surprise them. They then create an atmosphere of fear. “Uniform, government office set-up , legal sections... they will scare you so much on the phone... In the midst of the conversation you will not be able to even think,” he said.
And then their third move begins - the time pressure. “These people create so much of psychological pressure on the victim that one gets scared. People from every class and age group fall victim to Digital Arrest," said PM Modi.
People have lost lakhs of rupees earned through their hard work, out of sheer fear, the prime minister.
He urged citizens to not be scared whenever they receive such a call. "You should be aware that no investigative agency never inquires like this through a phone call or a video call. I am enumerating the three steps to Digital Security. These three steps are - 'Stop – Think – Take Action. As soon as you get a call, stop... - don't panic, stay calm, don't take any hasty steps, don't give away your personal information to anyone; if possible take a screenshot and record it for sure,” the prime minister explained.
“After this comes the second step. The first step was ‘stop’ and the second step is 'think'. No government agency threatens you on the phone like this, neither inquires nor demands money on a video call like this. If you feel scared, then know that something is wrong. The first step, the second step and now I spell out the third step. In the first step I said - ‘Stop’... in the second step I said - 'Think', and the third step tells you - 'Take action',” said PM Modi.
The prime minister urged citizens to dial national cyber helpline 1930, report on cybercrime.gov.in, inform family and police, preserve evidence.
“Friends, I’ll reiterate that there is no system like digital arrest in the law, this is just a fraud, deceit, it is a lie, a gang of criminals and those who are doing this are enemies of society. To deal with the fraud that is going on in the name of digital arrest, all the investigative agencies are working together with the state governments. For synchronisation among these agencies, a National Cyber Co-ordination Centre has been set up. Thousands of such fraudulent video calling IDs have been blocked by the agencies. Lakhs of SIM cards, mobile phones and bank accounts have also been blocked. Agencies are doing their job, but for protection from scams in the name of digital arrest, it is very important that everyone is aware, every citizen is aware. Those who are victims of this kind of cyber fraud should let as many people as possible know about it,” the prime minister said.
He also urged schools and colleges to involve students in the campaign against cyber scams. “We can fight this challenge only with the collective efforts in society,” he said.