- The reason for all this is failure of the social networking sites to keep proper check on mass creation of fake accounts which is emerging as a major threat not only to peace and brotherhood but also to credibility of genuine users.
JAMMU: Irrespective of age and gender, these days every individual using internet and social media to keep self updated about the happening around and also get important work done on finger tips. To be precise internet has become very very important part of life for making things easier.
But in the recent past, a new syndrome has emerged on social sites which can be best described as ‘love fever’ which is quite high on the internet from the past some time. In-fact is has nothing to do with the love or affection, it is a sort of infatuation forced on you using opposite gender as a tool.
Some mischievous elements are also highly active on the social sites trying their best to fleece and extract money from you using different tacts.
If you are are an active social sites user, you need to be active, thoughtful and alert always, otherwise highly motivated and trained money extractors active on social sites 24/7 can easily trap you and easily get your pocket emptied.
You need to be alert, also aware your friends your family, and everyone you care for about this growing menace highly active on internet especially social sites these days.
It can be you or your friend on target of these miscreant and mischievous elements, who will start with sending you friend requests either on Facebook, phone or contact you through email.
These elements pretend to be foreigner, can first send you friend requests using fake facebook accounts they create using Display Picture (DP) of beautiful foreign girls/woman which they manage from internet easily.
To attract, trap and lure men and young boys they first pretend that they fell in love. They start with sending love messages, quotes, beautiful pictures of girls to which they make one believe those pictures are theirs own. This exercise is completely a well design deeply conspired to attract you and believe them, and once you believe them, you are completely in their trap.
Some times, they can even make video calls to you, so you see them live and your belief is firm that the person on the other side is genuine and not the fake.
It is obvious that anyone can easily believe the genuineness after getting video calls from the other side and seeing the person on other side live talking to you.
But if is not so, you need to keep in mind that it is not just a single person trying to lure, attract and trap you with an actual intent to cheat and cause you financial damage/loss.
In-fact is is a well connected group of people who are highly trained and motivated to trap you. They are interconnected and spread in all the countries.
Once you started believing them they will showering too much love on you and will express their desire to meet you. In most of the situation as going by the law of nature as opposites attract, being a male you may fall flat and desire to meet such girl/woman.
To initiate the process for meeting, you will be either asked to send money to them so they buy air tickets and come to meet you and spent some days with you. If they ask you to send them money for travel, in such situation they will present themselves as poor or middle class so cant afford travel money. If you believe them and you send the money, you have to forget about meeting the person and also about the money, as once you send, their mission/task is completed.
The other way to extract money from you can be different. The lady or the girl can make sure that you believe that they are rich and completely in love with you. They will be showering too much love on you and express deep desire to meet you by visiting your country.
They will ask you about your likes and will tell you that they are going out for shopping today, tomorrow or on the weekend. After that they will tell you that they want to shop for you also.
They may ask you size of pent, shoe, shirt, watch, etc. As they will tell you that it is sale time in their city or mall and things are cheaper.
Next day they will send you pictures of shirts, watch, jeans, shoe, perfumes, laptop or anything they think can attract you more.
Pertinent to mention here that, such picture are easily available on internet or you can click at any shop nearby .
They will send you travel tickets, and tell you that they are travelling to your country and will elaborate you about the travel schedule. (Relevant to mention here that such fake tickets are created using different software available on internet).
Next day or after two days you will get a call from your own country. Either from Mumbai Airport or Delhi Airport. The person will introduce himself as Custom Officer. He will ask you, some lady with name… XYZ.. has come from ABC country to meet you do know her?. As obvious you will tell yes. The next thing so-called Custom Officer will tell you she has brought some excess gift items and they need to be cleared of Custom for which she had to pay 80 or 90 thousand rupees she has paid 30, or 40 thousand rupees and balance 50, 000 need to be deposited but she is not having the cash so she seeks your help.
Next, he will hand over the phone to the girl/lady she will first shower love on you thereafter will tell you that she has cheque with her but cant cash at the Airport, so you send her money for Custom clearance and on reaching you she will pay you.
If you ask her how to send the money, she will handover the phone to so-called Custom Officer, who will give you account number and bank details, which will be of a person from the city of Delhi or Mumbai.
In-fact the so-called Custom Officer would be the member of the same gang.
If you again ask for another bank account, he will give you account number of other person, with different details.
For your understanding and more clarity, you being an aware citizen need to focus on few things.
- No Custom Officer ever calls anyone asking for paying the clearance amount.
- Though it is not possible, for few minutes if we suppose, the Custom Deptt called, in such situation they should ask to send or deposit the money in official account not in personnel account of any person.
- If the lady cant cash her cheque at the Airport where such facilities are made easily available for the foreigners how can she cash it in your city.
If you transfer the cash to the account they gave you, their work is done and your money gone.
The matter was cross checked with the Higher Authorities of Custom Deptt, and they clarified that Custom Deptt Officials have no time to call for asking for paying the clearance amount, it is concern of the passenger not Deptt. They further cautioned not to fall prey to such elements and elaborated that these are group of some people from Nigeria and some locals who are involved in it.
People should use their senses and should not be influenced by such elements. We have also put on display cautionary notice on official site for public awareness.
Talking on social sites is not bad and making news friend is a good thing but people need to remain alert. Some ladies, introducing themselves as extra rich may contact you showing their interest to invest in your city, like opening hospitals, schools, or anything big. And offer your partnerships in profits without investments. Some may contact you seeking your help to transfer their money in millions and offer you 20% to 30% commission.
From within own country some may contact you for installation of mobile towers for which they will assure you monthly rent of over Rs 50,000 and a job and insurance.
Some may inform you that that you have won lottery, some may tell you that your ATM is blocked and seek pin number, some may ask for OTP on your mobile number. Some may offer you job in foreign etc and the list goes long and long.
To be precise you need to be alert and not fall prey to such frauds. Use internet to learn and aware people not to become the victim.
The reason for all this is failure of the social networking sites to keep proper check on mass creation of fake accounts which is emerging as a major threat not only to peace and brotherhood but also to credibility of genuine users.
(The storey is based on investigative journalism and cross checks.)