The Department of Telecommunications (DoT), which comes under the Ministry of Communications & Information Technology said that it disconnected several mobile numbers and blocked 20 mobile handsets for misuse of them for cybercrime and financial fraud.
In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), the department wrote that several mobile numbers were disconnected by them, and "20 associated mobile handsets have been blocked for misuse in cybercrime/Financial Fraud".
This comes after a Bengaluru-based entrepreneur Aditi Chopra who shared about a complex financial scam on X. She said that she almost fell victim to a well-planned fraud that simply used cleverly constructed SMS to generate confusion and ultimately, steal money.
Tagging her post, the DoT asked people to immediately report suspected fraud to Chakshu (a platform for reporting fraud calls and texts) if they observe such incidents.
In March (2024), the telecom department issued an advisory to citizens about calls impersonating DoT, threatening people to disconnect their mobile numbers.
Calls are being received by the citizens wherein callers, in the name of DoT, are threatening that all of their mobile numbers would be disconnected or their mobile numbers are being misused in some illegal activities, the department has said.
It also issued an advisory about WhatsApp calls from foreign-origin mobile numbers (like +92) impersonating government officials and duping the people.
Also, Government launched Chakshu portal to combat online fraud in March. Earlier, TRAI further asked the telecom companies to introduce the Caller Name Presentation (CNAP) service to prevent fake calls. Later, as a part of the Sanchar Sathi Initiative by the Central Government, which is prepared by the Department of Telecommunications, this portal was designed to let users to complain about fraudulent calls and messages.
What is the Chakshu Portal?
In the Chakshu Portal, Indian smartphone users will be able to report fraudulent communication. It has been launched as a Sanchar Sathi initiative of the Central Government and it's communication might have been done through fake calls, SMS, e-mail etc. Apart from this, users can make complaints related to bank accounts, payment wallets, and SIM cards.
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Inputs from IANS
