Cyber crimes are rising in Mumbai, India, and around the world. Every other day, we cover a cybercrime involving either extortion, scams, or even identity theft. One look at the FIRs, and one can say that it is not just the old and those new to the digital world who are conned or even the less-educated. We have had cases of bank managers, sales executives, and others falling for cons like online trading scams.

The amounts stolen in these cybercrimes aren’t small anymore. We have seen cases where people have lost anything between ₹1 Lakh and even ₹1 Crore, all in a matter of days. The authorities have swung into action, setting up a Mumbai cyber crime helpline—193o. However, there are some ways in which you can steer clear of a cyber crime—whether it is a digital arrest or a credit card scam.

5 Tips To Steer Clear Of a Cyber Crime:

#5 Speak to People

Always and forever, remember that networking and interacting with people is an essential part of safe living. Once you start speaking to people, you get to know what’s going on in the world currently. In all the FIRs that we have read, it comes across that if the victim had just read a particular news article, they would have got wind of the scam that they are going to be a part of.

It would be hard to believe, but a previous generation has seen most of the cyber crimes in their time, with just some tweaks. Your dad must have spoken to a common friend who told him about a 20K investment in buying the best detergent that will revolutionise the market, while you are said to invest

#4. Have At Least One Financial Professional In Your Friends Group

Most cyber crimes today involve scammers duping people, fooling them into investing money and promising them fantastic—but fake—returns. Most of us are working professionals and have some other reason for contacting an accountant.

Every salaried individual needs to file their taxes, and most of them take the help of an accountant. The moment someone contacts you with an investment scheme that seems ludicrous, reach out to a finance professional to know whether it is too good to be true.

#3 Read Mainstream News

Yes, the current mainstream news is not perfect, but by breaking away from the clutter, you will at least be aware of the various types of crimes that are occurring around the country—and most importantly, the financial ones and ones that happen online.

#2 Be Confident

This is most important for people who could be scammed by the digital arrest scam. The scamsters’ modus operandi depends on increasing the urgency of the matter, telling the victims that a warrant has been issued against them and that they could be arrested anytime soon.

Of course, scamsters use various permutations and combinations to dupe people, but one aspect that remains common is that the individual has to transfer money to keep their freedom and does not have to move anywhere.

The calls could be highly efficient, as so many people are falling for them. But it is our time to take some courage and use the ‘Come at me, bro’ concept in life. If they say that you will be arrested, tell them that you are okay with being detained. If they say that all your debit cards will be blocked right away, tell them that you are okay with it, you have cash with you and can handle the rest when you reach home, or visit the bank the next day.

#1 The Ambani Rule

And finally, we have the Ambani Rule, which basically boils down to, ‘Why isn’t A Big Company In On This?” Think about it: if a company finds out that there’s a diamond mine in some village, why would it be looking for retail funds like you and me and not directly selling it to Ambanis or some other corporation? If investing in some product can get you 36% returns in a year, why hasn’t a corporation already taken its first steps to make it its monopoly?

These are five simple steps to avoid cybercrime.

The Vigilant Blog

Covers the crime beat, spreading awareness about crimes, scams and everything dastardly.

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