IIT Bombay student loses Rs 7 lakh in ‘digital arrest’ scam

MUMBAI: An IIT Bombay student lost Rs 7.29 lakh after a fraudster posed as a Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) employee and coerced him into paying the money by intimidating him under the pretext of ‘digital arrest’, police said on Tuesday.

‘Digital arrest’ is a new and growing form of cyber fraud in which fraudsters pose as law enforcement officials or personnel of government agencies, and intimidate victims through audio/video calls.