An elderly woman dies after a digital arrest, defrauded of ₹6.6 lakh in three days, scammers continue to send messages even after her death

A horrifying case of cybercrime has come to light in Hyderabad. A 76-year-old woman was placed under digital arrest for three days, after which she died.

A horrific case of cybercrime has come to light in Hyderabad. Cybercriminals placed a 76-year-old retired government doctor under digital arrest for three days. These criminals called the doctor posing as government officials and defrauded her of ₹6.6 lakh during the digital arrest. The victim, distraught by this, suffered a heart attack and died. The criminals continued sending messages even after her death.

The case began with a WhatsApp call

According to reports, on September 5th, the victim received a video call on WhatsApp. The caller had the Bengaluru Police logo as his profile picture. The callers even showed documents stamped with the Supreme Court, ED, and RBI seals to intimidate the woman. The scammers told her that she had been named in a human trafficking case and would be arrested if she didn't pay.

Fearing arrest, the woman sent the money.

Fearing arrest, the woman transferred ₹6.6 lakh from her pension account to the scammers' account. The scammers continued to threaten her with arrest through video calls and messages. On September 8th, after nearly 70 hours of digital arrest, the victim experienced chest pains. She was subsequently taken to the hospital, but her life was not saved. The family learned of the woman's digital arrest after the funeral on September 9th.

How to protect yourself from such scams?

Remember that there is no provision for digital arrest in Indian law. So, if someone is threatening to digitally arrest you, be cautious.

If someone is calling you pretending to be a government official, verify their name, position, and department by verifying it officially.

Do not share sensitive information with unknown or suspicious individuals via email, text, or call.