Online e-challan scams on the rise again: Here’s how to spot and steer clear of them

With the festive season in full swing, the Indian government and cybersecurity experts are once again issuing warnings to raise awareness against online e-challan scams. The scam involves cyber criminals sending messages to unsuspecting people claiming that they need to immediately pay their traffic violation dues via the ‘eChallan Parivahan’ portal set up by the Ministry of Raid Transport and Highways. Introduced in 2012 and implemented across India by 2017, the e-challan system allows the government and people to keep track of traffic violations associated with a vehicle and pay fines on the go.