ICICI Bank warns customers of ‘extortion scam’

Various types of cyber scams are taking place in India. One of them that has emerged in the recent past, is the extortion scam. Cyber criminals are targeting people through dating sites, social media and gaming apps. You may receive a call or message stating that they have your private photos and if you don’t want them to go viral, transfer money immediately.

Inorder to alert people about this kind of extortion scam, ICICI Bank has issued an advisory. Let’s understand how the extortion scam works and how you can protect yourself from it.

What is an extortion scam?

Extortion in simple terms means blackmail. That’s exactly what happens in an extortion scam. Cyber criminals send threatening messages, emails, or even directly call you. They claim to have sensitive information such as your private photos or videos and threaten to make them public if you don’t pay them money. They also threaten to share them with your friends and family. The purpose of sending such emails is to scare you into giving them money.

ICICI Bank has cautioned its customers about such emails. The bank says there are signs to watch out for to know if you are being scammed. In such calls, messages, or emails, the sender or caller claims to be from a government department, loan recovery agency or a trusted company. So be cautious!

In many instances, the sender or caller also claims that there is a pending loan in your name. If you don’t pay, legal action will be taken against you or you will be arrested. They may further ask for a fee or fine to settle the matter. Personal information such as passport details, date of birth, or bank information may also be asked. They may even create a fake agency and threaten you that if you don’t pay up immediately, the police will come to your house and arrest you.

How can you protect yourself from extortion scam?

1. First of all, if you receive such a call threatening you to pay money, don’t panic. Hang up and don’t respond.
2. Do not make any payment to anyone through unusual methods like gift cards, hampers, vouchers, or wire transfers.
3. If a caller sends you someone’s contact details, do not call back on that number. Call the organization directly to verify the caller’s identity. Visit the organization’s official website and find official contact details.
4. Do not respond to messages or emails. If you do, scammers will intensify their efforts to extort money from you.
5. Do not send money to any unknown person and do not disclose details of your credit card or online banking account. Do not share identity card information like driving license or password over email or phone.
6. Don’t open any attachments that come in emails. Do not click on any links and do not download any files. These could infect your computer with malware.

So, don’t be afraid of such calls; instead, file a complaint.

Laws which can help you..

Under Section 308 of the Indian Penal Code, if someone extorts money by threatening, they can face up to 7 years in jail or a fine, or both. Under the Information Technology Act 2000, threatening to publish photos can lead to 3 years in jail and a fine of ₹2 lakhs, while digitally publishing such photos can result in 3 years in jail and a fine of ₹5 lakhs. If caught for a second time, there is a provision for 5 years in jail and a fine of ₹10 lakhs.

If you want to file a complaint online, you can do so on two government websites – cybercrime.gov.in by the Home Ministry and sancharsaathi.gov.in by the Department of Telecommunications on the Chakshu page.

These precautions are necessary to protect yourself from falling victim to such scams.