The challenges posed by online scams persisted as a major source of stress in 2023. Despite entering the new year, 2024, there is no sign of a decline in the menace of cyber fraud. Individuals continue to fall victim to online scammers, losing substantial amounts, sometimes in the thousands and lakhs, due to deceptive tactics. In a recent incident, a Pune-based tech professional found himself defrauded of approximately Rs 20.32 lakh after engaging with posts on social media.
The scam started when the 40-year 40-year-old Avinash Krishnanakutti Kunnubaram who is an IT professional from the Pimpri-Chinchwad area received a message from an unidentified number in March 2023. The unknown man offered Avinash an opportunity to earn more money by completing some online tasks.
Since the beginning of the year 2023, marked by uncertainty of jobs and mass layoffs, Avinash, in the hope of earning more money, agreed to take up a part-time job. He was assigned tasks that involved liking social media posts, with corresponding monetary benefits. Initially, after completing some tasks, Avinash did receive payment, which made him develop trust in the fraudster. However, the fraudster later enticed him to join a paid task group, where he was required to invest money to earn more.
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Pune-Based Techie Lost Rs 20.32 Lakh Lost
Avinash willingly accepted the paid job offer and ended up transferring a total of Rs 20.32 lakh by the end of December 2023. However, it was only at this point that he realised he had fallen victim to a fraudulent scheme.
Recognising the gravity of the situation, Kunnubaram approached the Wakad police on January 3, and a formal complaint was registered under Sections 406, 419, 420, 34 of the IPC, along with Sections 66(c) and (d) of the Information Technology Act.
This incident is part of a concerning trend where individuals have lost their employment due to engaging in online assignments. Over the past few months, numerous cases have surfaced where victims, seeking better returns, invested money. Unfortunately, when attempting to withdraw their invested funds, they faced losses. The scamming groups either blocked them or coerced victims into investing more by using blackmail, threatening them with the forfeiture of their money.
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