Ahmedabad Scammer News –
A man from Ahmedabad lost Rs 7 lakh to scammers on Instagram who lured him with an iPhone 14 from Dubai in order to fool him into paying a little fee and extra delivery costs. Concerns are raised and the necessity of being watchful against misleading practices is highlighted by the growing tendency of scammers abusing virtual numbers with the +92 country code.
Cybercriminals are using virtual numbers with the +92 country code, which is frequently linked with Pakistan, to conduct fraudulent activities. This is a worrying trend that India has recently noticed. Scammers have recently started defrauding people by luring unwary people into falling for their traps by utilizing phrases like “Bhai will call from Dubai.”Under the guise of obtaining discounted goods from Dubai, the con artists make alluring promises to potential victims, such a brand-new iPhone 14. The victims are unaware that accepting the alluring offer will have serious repercussions.
Inside Story of Scam
According to reports, Virag Doshi, a 24-year-old businessman from Dhandhuka in the Ahmedabad region, recently fell victim to this virtual number scam. Doshi got a message on his Instagram account on April 18. It read, “Congratulations! Bade Bhai and Chhote Bhai have given you a free iPhone 14. Simply pay a modest cost of Rs 3,000. To make a payment on the specified number, use UPI.
Doshi immediately paid the nominal amount of Rs 3,000 as advised through UPI on the provided number because he was excited about the possibility of receiving a phone worth approximately Rs 70,000 for free.
Doshi got a call the following day from a phone number with the country code +92. Doshi was promised by the caller, who identified himself as “Bade Bhai” from Dubai, that his iPhone 14 and a watch were packed and prepared for delivery at Surat airport. Doshi was anticipating his precious items with joy.
The following day, a call from ‘Sanjay Sharma’ purported to be in charge of delivering the package came through for Doshi. Sharma, who speaks Gujarati well, asked for an extra Rs 8,000 for the delivery. Doshi obliged and paid the sum, believing the con artists. To his disappointment, he never received the iPhone or watch that had been promised.
When Doshi realized that he had been the victim of a cunning scheme, he examined his bank account and saw that between April 18 and May 7, an astounding Rs 6.76 lakh had been debited. He had no idea that the scammers had drained his bank account.
Doshi had mistakenly given the money to the con artists himself, Inspector P N Zinzuwadia of the Dhandhuka police said, unaware of the sizeable amount he was transferring. It’s important to note that no Pakistani person was actually involved in the fraud because the perpetrators just used fake numbers to carry out their illicit actions.
Authorities from the CID (criminal) cyber unit have documented an increasing number of similar scams across the country where con artists use Pakistani numbers to pose as “Bade Bhai and Chhote Bhai” from a reputable store in Dubai and entice victims with the promise of free or inexpensive iPhones.
Law enforcement officials are worried because this worrying trend of virtual number fraud has spread to some foreign countries. Being watchful and cautious while dealing with ominous calls and offers becomes essential in the battle against cybercrime as offenders continue to defraud innocent victims with their deceptive “Bhai ka Call” tactic. Our best line of defense against falling for such cunning tricks is awareness and care.
