Last year, the Delhi police nabbed six crafty individuals from Jamtara, a place notorious for its cyber scams. These individuals managed to trick over 2,500 people, swindling a whopping Rs. 1 crore. Their method? Pretending to be customer care representatives for leading banks and online retailers. They published their phone numbers as customer care contacts, and when unsuspecting people called for assistance, the scammers mirrored their cell phones and syphoned off funds from their accounts. This is a regular day in many Indian districts. It’s like the wild west of cyber crime! It’s no surprise then that this story lent itself organically to an eponymous web series which became a pop culture phenomenon.

In the first four months of this year itself, over 7,40,000 cyber crime complaints were filed on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal and the quantum of losses suffered exceeded Rs. 1,750 crores. The major scams ranged from online investment fraud, illegal lending apps and OTP scams.

India’s rapid internet penetration has brought a wave of digital transformation across sectors, even reaching the remotest of areas. But this digital boom has also given scammers a fertile ground to operate. They are incredibly tech savvy, using online tools like OTPs and digital payment gateways to defraud people across the globe within minutes. These templatised scams are a result of their creativity and deep insights into human psychology. Scammers employ the right tactics to exploit people’s fear and insecurities, effectively short-circuiting their rational thinking.

Cracking Your Mind’s Code

While a hacker has to break into your computer software to steal sensitive information, cyber criminals have another trick up their sleeve. They strive towards “hacking” your mind by taking undue advantage of certain mental shortcuts that all of us use. Here are a few ways they pull it off:

●  Lack of Awareness: Many of us just aren’t aware of the latest scam tactics. Scammers are always coming up with new tactics, and it’s easy to get caught off guard.

● Predisposition to Vulnerability: We all have our weak moments. Ever made a spur-of-the-moment decision you regretted? That’s exactly the kind of impulsive behaviour that scammers bank on.

  Had a rough day at work? Your defences are down, and your judgement is clouded. Scammers often strike when you are least prepared.

●  Impairment of Rational Thinking: Scammers lure you in with irresistible offers and create a sense of urgency, making it almost impossible to take any well-informed decisions. Imagine getting a message claiming that you have won a free iPhone. Exciting, right? But there’s a catch — click this link now, and share the message with friends. It’s a classic phishing trap.

● Fear and Insecurity: Nothing gets us moving faster than fear. Scammers prey on this insecurity, telling you that your bank account is deactivated or that your electricity connection will be disconnected and coercing you to click a link to verify your identity. In your state of panic, you might not realise that you are passing the keys of your vault into the wrong hands.

●  Optimism Bias: We all like to live under the illusion that bad things can only happen to other people, not us. This overconfidence makes us underestimate the significant risk that scammers pose. Believing that we are invincible makes us more vulnerable.

●  Sunk Costs: Ever heard of throwing good money after bad? That’s the sunk costs fallacy at play. Once you have invested a little money in a scam, it’s hard to walk away, even when rationality dictates that there is no coming back. Scammers exploit this very attitude by persistently asking for just a bit more to complete the transaction.

●  Similarity: Scammers are masters of the art of building trust by pretending to share common interests or even life struggles with you. Lonely and looking for connection? They will act as your best friend and gradually turn into your worst nightmare.

●  Authority and Credibility: People respect authority, and scammers play on this very power dynamic by posing as officials from banks or other service providers to give effect to their ulterior motives. They threaten account deactivation unless you comply. To add a layer of credibility, they might even share fake IDs. It’s all about creating pressure and urgency.

●  Lack of Caution: People often make the mistake of not being vigilant enough to verify the facts stated by scammers and the devil lies in the details. It’s easy to trust a convincing email or message at face value but taking a moment to double-check it, will go a long way in safeguarding your interests.

●  Advancement in Technology: The advent of AI has exacerbated the menace of cyber crimes. Imagine getting a call from a loved one asking for money to bail them out of an emergency. Your feeling of concern is going to turn into one of regret once you realise it was actually a scammer using AI to replicate their voice.

Scammers often pull up the personal information of their potential victims from their social media profiles and use AI to add a personal touch to the phishing messages, making them seem incredibly real.

Your Guide to Cyber Safety: Essential Dos and Don’ts

Scared of picking up your phone, the next time an unknown number flashes on it? You don’t have to worry if the following steps are on top of your mind:

●   Awareness:

A.  Do: Stay updated on the latest cyber scams.

B.  Don’t: Think you are immune to scams. Stay alert!

●   Preventive Measures:

A.  Do: Use the latest antivirus software. Create strong and unique passwords.

B. Don’t: Reuse passwords across different accounts. Don’t save them in browsers.

●   Vigilance:

1. Do: Verify the credentials of callers claiming to be representatives of banks or other service providers. Look out for the prefix 160 for legitimate calls from any government department, bank, financial institution or telecom operator. Establish code words with family members for authenticating emergencies.

B. Don’t: Share OTPs or other sensitive information with unknown callers.

●  Psychological Measures:

A. Do: Take a breather if you feel anxious. Consult with someone you trust.

B. Don’t: Cave under pressure or let small losses push you into bigger ones. If something feels off, it probably is.

In a world where scammers are getting smarter by the day, staying vigilant is more important than ever. By staying informed, understanding your own psychological fault lines and taking the above mentioned simple precautions in your day-to-day life, you can be one step ahead of these masterminds and beat them at their own game. In case of any suspicious call or message either through SMS or through WhatsApp etc., do report to cybersaathi.gov.in or in case of a fraud which has already happened, immediately report on cybercrime.gov.in or on 1930.

Ma’am, I have a delivery for you. OTP, please?