Any mobile user in the country can lose everything in e-SIM scams. The central government has also issued a warning message about this. In this case, it is not necessary to know any kind of OTP or ATM related information. All the information of the customers is reaching the hands of the fraudsters with just one click. Several such allegations have come to the fore recently. After this, the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center, an organization under the Ministry of Home Affairs, has issued a warning message to the citizens of the country.

How do the fraudsters work?

According to a report by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center (I4C), mobile phone users of various age-groups are being targeted. The fraudsters are talking about activating the e-SIM of the customers by calling them. An activation link is also being sent to the phone. And by clicking on it, the mobile phone user is ‘trapped’.

Physical SIM is automatically converted to an e-SIM

According to that report, by clicking on the link sent by the fraudsters, the physical SIM is automatically converted to an e-SIM. And as soon as that happens, fraudsters take control over your device. All the confidential information starting from your passwords to bank’s OTP can easily be accessed by cyber criminals. In this way fraudsters are stealing several important information of the customers.

What is an e-SIM?

An e-SIM is an embedded SIM. Basically, it is a digital version of the normal SIM in the smartphone. This e-SIM is hidden in the smartphone or smart watch, that is, in the relevant device. It cannot be removed.

How to avoid the e-sim trap?

The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre has issued a warning asking users to not click on any suspicious link even by mistake. It has also been said to be careful with the phone. Even then, if the network on the phone suddenly goes down, the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre has also issued a message asking customers to immediately contact their bank or mobile service provider.

>> Cybercriminals obtain a duplicate SIM for your mobile number, giving them access to your bank accounts and personal information.

>> If you receive any suspicious call or message asking you to switch to an eSIM, ignore it immediately.

>> Never Share OTPs or Passwords: Sharing these details allows cybercriminals to deactivate your existing SIM and activate a new one in their control.

>> Protect your documents: Only share personal documents when necessary, and always mark the purpose of sharing on the document to prevent misuse.

>> If you encounter any suspicious calls, messages, or emails, report them to the Government of India’s Chakshu portal.

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This comes after a recent analysis by the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and State Police which has revealed that 28,200 mobile handsets were misused in cybercrimes. The DoT further analyzed and found that a staggering 20 lakh numbers were used with these mobile handsets, as per an official statement.

The Government of India has been persistently making efforts to check cyber frauds under the secure India project at three levels: national, organisational, and individual. DoT, MHA and Police have joined hands for curbing the misuse of telecom resources in cyber crime and financial frauds. This collaborative effort aims to dismantle networks of fraudsters and protect citizens from digital threats.

Mobile connections disconnected

Till 30th April 2024, DoT has disconnected 1.66 crore mobile connections for reasons such as users’ feedback and exceeding the individual limit to buy new SIM cards. DoT has also blocked 1.58 lakh unique mobile device identification number (IMEI), due to involvement in cyber crimes and financial frauds or mobile connections taken on fake or forged documents.

Through digital interventions to combat fraud and crime, the Department of Telecom Services has successfully prevented citizens from losing approximately Rs 1000 crore in last one year.

Cyber crime in India – Where to report

The department of Telecommunication has taken many initiatives to spread awareness so that citizens can make use of such tools for addressing their grievances as well as protect themselves from cyber-frauds.

Anyone who has lost money due to financial fraud or is a victim of cyber-crime, can report at cyber crime helpline number 1930 or website https://www.cybercrime.gov.in.

National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal

Ministry of Home Affairs operationalised the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal www.cybercrime.gov.in to provide a centralized mechanism to the citizens for online reporting of all types of cyber crime incidents, with a special focus on cyber crimes against women and children. Incidents reported on this portal are automatically routed to the State/UT law enforcement agency concerned for taking further steps as per the provisions of the law. A toll-free helpline number ‘1930’ has been operationalized to get assistance in lodging online cyber complaints.

Chakshu Portal

Launched in March this year, the Chakshu portal is a platform developed by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to report suspicious communication, such as fraudulent calls, SMS, or messages on social media like WhatsApp. The Chakshu portal introduced under the Sanchar Sathi initiative allows users to report fraudulent activities. These include fraudulent calls, messages regarding lottery or job offers, and potential leaks of phone numbers by businesses.

Digital Intelligence Platform

Another initiative launched by the Government in March this year is the Digital Intelligence Platform, which is a secure and integrated platform for real-time intelligence sharing, information exchange and coordination among the stakeholders, including telecom operators, Law Enforcement Agencies, banks and financial institutions, social media platforms, identity document issuing authorities, among others. The portal also contains information regarding the cases detected as misuse of telecom resources.

Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children Scheme

The Ministry of Home Affairs provides financial assistance under the ‘Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children Scheme, to states and Union Territories for their capacity building such as setting up of cyber forensic-cum-training laboratories, hiring of junior cyber consultants and training of Law Enforcement Agencies’ personnel, public prosecutors and judicial officers. So far, cyber forensic-cum-training laboratories have been commissioned in 33 States/UTs, as per an announcement.

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