Shimla:With the technology becoming synonymous with human lives, it's imperative that we also make sure to protect ourselves from technical dangers that may arise. An increasing number of cyber fraud cases have been reported in India recently as more and more people spend longer time on gadgets and world wide web.
The pandemic has also worsened the situation by shutting down traditional methods of communication and increasing dependency on mobile phones, laptops and computers.
After hacking, phishing and malware attacks, honey trapping is emerging as a new cybercrime practice.
What's honey trap?
Honey trap is a long detailed way of cheating a man or a woman of money by cyberfrauds. Using fake calls, first, the victim is chosen and made to talk to the opposite gender and then slowly over the time they befriend them.
After a period of talking and gaining confidence, a video call is done where when the victim is made to strip.
When the victim is undressed, he/she is recorded and screenshots are taken.
If the victim denies stripping, only images are taken and morphed to look like naked.
Using these videos and images, the victim is threatened and blackmailed. Money is demanded in order to not leak the material on the internet.
Honey trap victim from Shimla
A man from Shimla received a call from cybercriminals who on the pretext of the wrong number made a woman speak to him.
The woman spoke to him for some time and over the time they developed a friendship and started talking over the phone regularly. They then graduated to video calls.
During one of these video calls the woman recorded the man when he was nude.
After this, the woman started blackmailing the man for money and threatened to release the video online if he did not comply.
Fearing the threats the victim deposited 70 thousand rupees in the e-wallet mentioned by the cyber thugs.
Even after that when the blackmailing did not stop, the victim went to the police for help.
He filed a complaint to cyber police.
Also read: 'Awareness and alertness key to protection from cybercrimes'
The cyber cell registered a complaint and started investigating the matter.
With the help of the bank, the e-wallet was traced in which the victim had deposited 70 thousand rupees.
However, by the time it was traced the cyber thugs had taken out 45 thousand rupees and the rest of the recovered amount was given back to the victim.
Expert's advice on protecting self from honey trap
Cybercriminals honey trapping unsuspecting people in India Cyber experts believe that alertness and caution can save people from becoming a victim of a honey trap.
Narveer Singh, ASP of Shimla Cyber Cell, says that since nowadays most people have smartphones and most people are active on social media it is easy for cyber thugs to honey trap innocent victims.
According to Singh, in the cases of honey trap, thugs first search for their victims. All this is done by calling on the pretext of wrong number or any other excuse. After which gradually the process of conversation and befriending is done.
If the victim is a male, then a woman calls, and if the victim is female, a man calls. Slowly the conversation moves to video call also.
Video calls are made from phone to WhatsApp during which the person is asked to take off clothes and is recorded. He is then blackmailed using the videos and images for money.
What to do when stuck in a honey trap?
Cybercriminals honey trapping unsuspecting people in India ASP Narveer Singh says the victim should not panic if he/she gets stuck in the honey trap or similar situation. They should hold their ground and not agree to the demands of the blackmailers.
Immediately a complaint should be filed in the cyber cell regarding the same. Friends and family should also be told for moral support.
In any case, do not delete messages, call records related to the case. All these are important evidence in registering and investigating the case.
Keep screenshots of social media accounts since they are deactivated once the crime is done. The screenshots prove to be important evidence as sate is also saved in the image.
According to ASP Narveer Singh, at the beginning of the year 2021, 4 to 5 cases of honey trapping have been already registered with cyber police.
In view of the spreading web of cybercrime, it would not be wrong to say that in the coming days this trap will spread even more.
