Shimla: The growing popularity of online stock trading and digital investment platforms has opened a new hunting ground for cyber criminals, with investors being lured through fake trading apps, WhatsApp and Telegram groups, social-media advertisements, deepfake videos and promises of unusually high returns, Himachal Pradesh Police’s Cyber Crime Wing has warned.
Cyber criminals typically begin by building trust before pushing victims to invest increasingly larger sums, Cyber Crime Investigating Officer and Additional SP Narvir Singh Rathour said.
“Cyber criminals first sell confidence and then ask for money,” Rathour said, pointing to fabricated profit screenshots, professional-looking applications and fake expert profiles used to convince victims that their investments are generating substantial returns.
The fraud often comes to light when investors try to withdraw their money. At that stage, the fraudsters demand additional payments in the name of tax, penalties, processing charges or verification fees, turning an initial investment into a cycle of further financial losses.
Police have cautioned investors to treat guaranteed or unusually high returns, unsolicited investment offers on WhatsApp and Telegram, unknown trading applications or APK files and investment schemes promoted through social media as major warning signs.
Fake videos and deepfakes featuring celebrities, financial experts or government officials are also increasingly being used to create an appearance of legitimacy.
Police have advised investors not to act under pressure or transfer money merely because an online group, adviser or application appears professional.
Another major red flag is a demand to transfer funds into personal or third-party bank accounts. Investors should also never share OTPs, UPI PINs, passwords or trading credentials with unknown persons.
Rathour has urged investors to follow a simple “STOP–CHECK–VERIFY” rule before putting money into any online investment.
STOP: Do not transfer money under pressure or because of promises of guaranteed returns.
CHECK: Independently check the broker, adviser, trading application, website, registration details and payment account before making any transaction.
VERIFY: Cross-check investment-related information through official sources such as SEBI and the relevant stock exchange. Links, phone numbers or documents supplied by an alleged investment adviser should not be treated as proof of authenticity.
“A professional-looking application, WhatsApp group or social-media profile does not make an investment genuine,” Rathour said, warning people never to hand over control of their bank or trading accounts or disclose confidential credentials to unknown persons.
Police have also advised victims to act immediately if a cyber investment fraud occurs. They should call 1930, report the incident through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal and immediately inform their bank or payment service provider.
Victims should preserve screenshots, transaction records, UTR numbers, mobile numbers, URLs, application details and WhatsApp or Telegram conversations, as these may assist the investigation.
Police have further warned victims against a second trap in which fraudsters or fake recovery agents promise to recover lost money in return for another payment.
The basic precaution, according to the Cyber Crime Wing, is simple: take a few minutes to verify before transferring money. In digital investment fraud, verification can be the difference between protecting hard-earned savings and losing them.
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