Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Interpol help to be sought to probe ‘Nigerian scam’

CHENNAI: It is called the Nigerian Scam. The latest crime in online looting has relieved Internet users in Chennai alone of Rs.75 lakh. The money lost at the State-level could be much more.

The Central Crime Branch police in Chennai city are investigating 52 complaints in which gullible Internet users replied to tempting emails and lost their money. About a dozen varieties of emails have been identified. They made the victims part with vital information, enabling the swindlers, mostly based in Nigeria and Israel, to empty their bank accounts.

“The phishing emails were sent from browsing centres. We have decided to seek the help of Interpol to apprehend the suspects. An intensive awareness campaign is being launched to educate Internet users not to get cheated by phishing mails,” Commissioner of Police R. Sekar told The Hindu.

According to police sources, the modus operandi was simple. The swindlers would send emails to net users at random with offers or queries that could prompt them to reply. On the face of it, it would appear as if the email was sent by a bank, corporate, legal firm or embassy. The recipients would be asked to furnish the username and password of their net-banking account so that money could be deposited online.

For instance, one complainant received a mail that he was the lucky winner of ‘UK National Lottery’ worth 25 lakh Pounds. The email further said the choice was made through an online lot system among millions of Internet users and that the winner had to send transaction/customs charges to a specified bank account.

Another email stated that a wealthy person, who died in a foreign country, had left all his money for the legal heir who could not be traced. Since the name of the net user matched with that of the legal heir, he could open a bank account and pay the court charges for getting the money. In many other cases, the emails looked like those sent by banks. The users were asked to send the username and password for security upgrade. Minutes after the required information was sent, their bank balances became nil.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (CCB – Bank Frauds), M. Paneerselvam, said Rs.17.4 lakh was recovered in two cases where money was transferred into accounts within the country. “When account holders alerted us that their money had been transferred without their consent, we took up the issue with the banks concerned. ‘Debit freeze’ option was utilised to safeguard the transferred money, which was restored to the victims,” he added.

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu