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Facebook sextortion scam: Mumbai Man loses Rs 12.24 lakh in romance fraud! Check 5 tips to stay safe
New Delhi: Fraud on social media platforms such as Facebook is on the rise. In yet another sextortion case, a man was recently defrauded to the tune of Rs 12.24 lakh. According to media reports, a gang extorted money from a 47-year-old Santacruz resident by blackmailing him with a video they had taken when the complainant was on a video call with a woman he had recently befriended on Facebook. The gang members posed as officials from YouTube and the Delhi police cyber unit and asked him to pay the sum to get his video removed from the video-sharing platform.
It all started when the complainant sent a friend request to a Facebook user Priyanka Sharma. Upon accepting his friend request, the woman started talking to him and later shared her WhatsApp number.
The complaint video called her on WhatsApp the same night and talked to her for a short period. However, during the same night, there were three video calls between the two, according to a report by Hindustan Times.
In one such call, the woman was reportedly naked and managed to convince him to strip off his clothes. The woman recorded the video and then threatened the complaint to upload it on social media platforms if he fails to pay her the asked sum, the report said.
On her instructions, he reportedly first sent Rs 20,000 to a given bank account. However, that didn’t stop there, as a few days later the complaint got a call from another gang member posing as a Delhi Police cyber cell officer, who told him that his video is on YouTube but since it violates the policy of the platform, a complaint has been registered.
The member then shared the phone number of one YouTube executive Shrikant. When the complaint called him, he was asked to pay money to get the video removed from the platform and resolve the matter.
It didn’t stop here. The complaint was further told by the member posing as a Police officer that the woman has allegedly committed suicide and they are now registering a murder case against him.
The complaint was asked to pay more money if he didn’t want his name to come in the case. After the continuous series of harassment, he finally filed an FIR with the Cyber police, the report said.
Here's How to Stay Safe from Sextortion Cases:
Updated:Jun 12, 2022, 02:32 PM IST
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Don’t Send/Accept Unknown Friend Requests
On Facebook or other social media platforms, you should not accept friend requests from unknown users. Similarly, you should not send friend requests to individuals you don’t know.
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Avoid Money Requests From Strangers
If you’ve created a bond with a stranger on social media platforms, you should not entertain their requests for money.
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Don’t Take Part In Any Offers
Scammers also try to loot the money from social media users by asking them to participate in offers or deals. One should avoid any such requests from unknown users on Facebook or other platforms.
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Don’t Share Intimate Photos, Videos
Social media users should avoid sharing intimate photos or videos with others. Fraudsters can use the media to blackmail you, as happened in the case described above.
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Seek Help
In case you have been looted in a sextortion fraud, reach out to the cyber cell of the police department. You can simply dial 1930 to contact the new Helpline number against cyber crimes.
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