T.N. cyber crime police warn of two new frauds

The Cyber Crime Wing of the Tamil Nadu police have warned of a sharp rise in two distinct types of cyber frauds namely Parivahan e-challan scam and cyber helpdesk scam.

According to a press release, these scams aimed at deceiving people by sending messages that look like ‘Parivahan e-challan’ to people accusing them of traffic violations. A link is attached to the message for payment of fine. 

Once installed, the fake application would seek permissions to access sensitive data, including SMS, contacts, and banking information. It would also enable the suspects to bypass OTPs using SMS access or screen overlays, enabling fraudulent transactions. Victims often realised the scam only after money is deducted from their bank accounts.

Cyber helpdesk scam

In another recent kind of fraud, the release said, the victims would receive a call from scammers posing as agents calling from cyber crime helpline. 

“They may contact the victim through WhatsApp, phone calls, Telegram, or even fake emails. These impersonators then demand further payments under the pretence of filing a complaint or recovering lost funds—resulting in a second round of fraud,” the release said. 

With an increase in the number of such frauds, the police issued an advisory asking the people to check traffic fines only on official government websites or verified apps and be aware that traffic authorities do not send traffic violation messages through WhatsApp.