CBI raids offices of many firms involved in technical support fraud scheme; international link traced

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has recently conducted search operations at the premises of private companies and residential premises of accused persons in an on-going investigation of a case at various locations, including Jaipur, Delhi, Noida, Gurugram, Faridabad, and Mainpuri in Uttar Pradesh, according to an official statement.  

During the search operations, the probe agency recovered digital evidence, various incriminating documents, bank accounts, fixed deposits worth Rs 190 crore (approx), cash of Rs 25 lakh (approx), Gold valued at Rs 55 lakh (approx) from these locations. 

A case was registered on a complaint against six private companies based at New Delhi, Jaipur (Rajasthan), Noida (Uttar Pradesh), Gurugram (Haryana) and other unknown persons, alleged to be involved in a technical support fraud scheme.

It was alleged that these companies would contact the victims via internet pop-up messages that falsely appeared to be security alerts from Microsoft or another well-known company. The pop-up messages fraudulently claimed that the consumer’s computer was infected by a virus. It would then run a scan on the consumer’s computer, falsely confirming the presence of a virus and malware. 

A toll-free number would be given, where the victim will contact, and call would land up in their call centers. These companies would then take the remote access to the victim’s computer and would convince the victim of the presence of non-existing problems and then would make them pay hundreds of dollars for unnecessary services and software. Many of these irrelevant softwares were also developed by the companies under investigation.

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The CBI is learned to have been collaborating with its counterparts in other countries to identify the network, dismantle their infrastructure, and bring the perpetrators of crime to justice. 

US Department of Justice and CBI collaborated in this regard, and US Federal court on Thursday ordered an individual and 5 companies to stop engaging in a technical-support fraud scheme that is alleged to have defrauded hundreds of elderly and vulnerable US victims. 

According to USDOJ, the said person of Glendale, California, knowingly provided US support for India-based accomplices in furtherance of the fraud. The said person facilitated the scheme through several companies, including in Singapore. 

The temporary restraining order issued by the US court dismantles these defendants’ US infrastructure, such as websites and payment processing relationships, and prohibits the defendants from continuing to facilitate the alleged scheme.

Similar coordination is being done by CBI with federal agencies of the other countries. CBI has been making concerted efforts to identify and rapidly dismantle any such network of transnational cyber frauds operated out of India.

Meanwhile, further investigation is on in this case.