How fake call centres in Mohali are scamming Americans and making millions
Three call centres busted, 213 arrested in four months. Find out how they bypassed the Indian banking system while defrauding US citizens
5 min read
The complainant, Mohammed Asif Ali Shaikh, 24, is a resident of the Malwani area in Malad (West), who has filed a police complaint against Mark Melvin and two others.
(File photo)Fake call centres in Mohali are becoming a significant threat to US citizens. Over the past four months, the district police and state cyber cell have dismantled three such centres, which were defrauding people in the United States.
According to sources, the recent busts represent only a small fraction of the problem. Hundreds of call centres are reportedly operating in Mohali, with a significant such operations estimated to be active in the district alone, defrauding individuals across the US.
Punjab’s Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Cyber Crime, V Neerja, however, refuted the existence of many other such fake call centres in Mohali, clarifying that while the district has become an IT hub with genuine call centres, cybercriminals often disguise their operations as legitimate businesses. She assured that the police act promptly whenever they receive information about illegal activities.
The FBI collaborates with various countries to enhance cybersecurity through the National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force (NCIJTF), a multi-agency task force under its umbrella. The task force shares information with the relevant countries where cyber fraud against US citizens has occurred. The Internet Crime Control Centre (IC3) is another platform where US citizens report cyber fraud, facilitating cooperation between US and Indian authorities in tackling these scams.
Recent Busta and Arrests
On May 17, the state cyber cell raided a call centre in Mohali’s Industrial Area, Phase 8, arresting 155 individuals, mostly from northeastern states like Manipur, Mizoram, and West Bengal. The police have yet to present the formal charges in court, but officials have indicated they will do so this month. The cyber cell is also collaborating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to share information about the victims in the US.
On June 26, district police raided another call centre in the industrial area, arresting 37 individuals. The common thread in both cases was the employment of northeastern natives in the call centres. The modus operandi involved scamming US citizens by posing as bankers or customer service representatives.
On August 6, the Mohali police busted yet another call centre in Zirakpur, arresting 21 people, including four women and four Sudanese nationals. This group was also targeting US citizens.
The Modus Operandi
The accused use deceptive tactics to defraud their victims. For example, in opposing bail for one of the suspects, the police revealed that Praveen Chetri, an employee of Webtap Solutions Private Limited, was involved in fraudulent activities in collusion with the company’s owner, Rishi Vyas.
The scammers sent emails to US citizens, claiming a pending transaction on their PayPal accounts. They provided a toll-free number, urging recipients to call if they disagreed with the charges. When victims called, the scammers, posing as bank employees, instructed them to purchase gift cards from eBay or Google Pay. The scammers then extracted the gift card codes and transferred the money to their own accounts.
Bypassing the banking system
The fraudsters bypass the Indian banking system by accepting payments from US citizens in the form of vouchers or bitcoins. Those arrested in the May and June raids admitted during interrogation that they instructed victims to purchase e-commerce gift vouchers, which were then encashed in India. They avoided using the banking system to prevent detection by Indian authorities. In the most recent bust, the police discovered that the scammers received payments in bitcoins.
Scale of the scam
The police are investigating how these scammers obtained personal data of US citizens. Preliminary findings suggest that the masterminds of these call centres purchased the data from contacts. An officer, speaking anonymously, revealed that successful scam calls could net between $250 and $1,200. On average, these fraudsters made hundreds of calls daily, with a success rate of 10-20%, yielding earnings of $4,000 to $7,000 per day.
Types of fraud
The scams include various forms of fraud, such as identity theft, child adoption fraud, money mule schemes, charity and disaster-related frauds, holiday and healthcare scams, ransom demands, spoofing, and phishing.
Cover of illegal call centres
State Cyber Cell officials discovered that these illegal call centres often operate under the guise of legitimate e-commerce support companies. The executives supposedly help customers shop online. However, these companies are merely fronts for the illegal call centres, allowing the scammers to avoid registering with any authority and continue their activities undetected.
Recruitment and operation
Investigations revealed that most of the arrested individuals had modest educational backgrounds, often college dropouts or graduates with senior secondary qualifications. Proficiency in English was a key qualification for employment in these call centres. Employees received salaries ranging from Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 35,000 per month, with additional incentives for successful scams. Superintendent of Police Jyoti Yadav noted that anyone with good English-speaking skills could work in these centres, regardless of their educational background.
An officer involved in the June 26 investigation observed that most of the call centre workers were from northeastern states, where English proficiency is higher than among locals, making them ideal candidates for these operations.
Police response
Mohali’s Superintendent of Police (Detective) Jyoti Yadav stated that investigations into these crimes are ongoing. She confirmed that the recently busted Zirakpur call centre had defrauded numerous US citizens andthat Sudanese nationals were involved in the crime alongside locals.
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