In a bizarre turn of events, a Mumbai woman's act of compassion towards an injured bird led her straight into the clutches of cyber fraudsters. Dhwani Mehta, a manager at Famous Studios in Mahalaxmi, became the unsuspecting victim of a clever scam that left her significantly lighter in her wallet. The story came to light through a police complaint, cited by Hindustan Times.
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It all started when Mehta spotted an injured bird while at work. She decided to lend a helping hand. However, lacking the contact details of any bird rescue organization, she turned to Google Search for assistance. Little did she know that this simple search would set off a chain of events leading to her financial misfortune.
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According to a Mumbai Central Government Railway Police (GRP) officer, Mehta stumbled upon a toll-free number of an NGO and promptly made the call. Unbeknownst to her, the seemingly helpful individuals on the other end of the line were cyber fraudsters in disguise.
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The crafty scammers wasted no time sending her a link to a complaint form, which Mehta completed and submitted. To add insult to injury, she even paid ₹1 for the privilege of registering her complaint. However, despite her best intentions, no rescue team materialized at her office as promised.
"After four days, while she was on a train traveling from Malad to Churchgate, she got a message that ₹99,988 had been debited from her bank account," revealed the GRP officer. Realizing that she had fallen prey to a cunning deception, Mehta immediately took action. She lodged a complaint online with the Cyber Crime Department and promptly visited her bank to submit a written complaint.
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Undeterred, Mehta sought justice by approaching the GRP to file a complaint against the fraudsters for impersonation, cheating, and forgery under the Indian Penal Code, as well as various sections of the Information Technology Act, 2000.
"We have written to the bank to obtain details about the account where the money was transferred, as well as to the cellphone companies," stated the diligent officer, emphasizing their commitment to bringing the culprits to justice.
In the wake of this incident, authorities are reminding citizens to exercise caution and remain vigilant while navigating the treacherous waters of the internet. Scammers are becoming increasingly creative and are always ready to exploit the unsuspecting.
As for Dhwani Mehta, her encounter with the bird may have left her with a lesson learned the hard way. However, her story serves as a cautionary tale for others, reminding us all to think twice before trusting a toll-free number found on the world wide web.
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