CBI cracksdown on the cybercrime network in the country and launches Operation Chakra II

New Delhi, October 21

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched Operation Chakra-II, aiming to combat and dismantle infrastructure of organized cyber-enabled financial crimes in India. This operation was conducted in collaboration with national and international agencies, alongside private sector giants.

During a nationwide crackdown, the CBI conducted intensive searches in five separate cases at 76 locations across multiple states, including Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Haryana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Bihar, Delhi, West Bengal, and Himachal Pradesh.

In the wake of Operation Chakra-II, 32 mobile phones, 48 laptops/hard disks, images of two servers, 33 SIM cards, and pen drives were confiscated and numerous bank accounts were freezed. CBI also seized a dump of 15 email accounts, illuminating the intricate web of deceit spun by the accused.

Among the cases targeted under Operation Chakra-II, two instances of International Tech Support Fraud Scam came to light. In these cases, the accused impersonated a global IT major and a multinational corporation with an online technology-driven trading platform. The accused, operating several call centers across 5 States/UTs, systematically preyed on foreign nationals, masquerading as Technical Support Representatives. It was alleged that the fraudulent activities associated with these centers had persisted over the past five years, with the perpetrators employing various international payment gateways and channels to facilitate the movement of illicitly acquired funds. It was further alleged that the several scammer groups were involved in running these call centers within the several States including Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana & Delhi and were deceiving foreign nationals by impersonating technical support representatives of two well-known multi-national companies. 

These scammers had allegedly posed as customer support agents for these reputable tech firms. It was also alleged that these scammers would contact the victims via internet pop-up messages that falsely appeared to be security alerts from these MNCs (Complainants). The pop-up messages fraudulently claimed that the consumer’s computer was having various technical issues. Fraudsters sell/extend various fake subscriptions of said MNC having global online trading platform (Complainant). A toll-free number would be given, where the victim would contact, and call would land up in their e-call centres (of accused). These companies would then take remote access of the victim’s computer & convince the victim of presence of non-existing problems and then allegedly make them pay hundreds of Dollars for unnecessary services impersonating these MNCs (Complainants).  Victims are mainly from US, UK, Germany, etc. These two separate cases were registered on complaints against 08 private companies and others on said allegations.

The Operation Chakra-II, fueled by critical intelligence from Financial Intelligence Unit-India (FIU-India), cracked a sophisticated crypto-currency fraud operation. This audacious scheme, under the guise of a fake crypto mining operation, allegedly targeted unsuspecting Indian citizens, resulting in a staggering loss of over Rs. 100 crore to Indian victims. 

It was further alleged that the fraudsters developed a fictitious cryptocurrency token, enticing investors with promises of substantial returns from investments in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies mining. It was also alleged that the accused created a website using the image of a renowned Indian American Crypto Technologist, misleading investors into believing their funds would be used to purchase mining machines. The profits generated from minted cryptocurrencies would purportedly be distributed among the investors. The app operated until August 2021, during which unsuspecting Indian citizens invested through various payment gateways and aggregators integrated into the app. Initially, the investors were allegedly given returns to gain their trust, but all payments ceased after August 2021. 

The accused allegedly amassed approximately Rs. 168.75 crore (approx.) through the services of a payment aggregator, leaving the investors in financial distress. It was further alleged that the fraudsters even developed dedicated applications to further deceive their victims. During investigation, 150 accounts were identified which included accounts of 46 shell companies, 42 proprietorship firms & 50 individual accounts, serving as conduits for collecting funds from the public, laundering the received funds, and transferring them to the ultimate beneficiaries. A majority of these funds were allegedly channeled through dormant shell companies and personal savings and current accounts. This case was registered against two private companies, their Directors and unknown others.

Based on evidence gathered during Operation Chakra-II, law enforcement agencies internationally are being notified of details of identified victims, Shell companies, identified money mules, identified proceeds of crime, details of co-accused/ support elements for comprehensive action to dismantle these criminal networks. The CBI is working closely in the spirit of international police cooperation with its international counterparts, including Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of USA, Cyber Crime Directorate and IFCACC of INTERPOL, the National Crime Agency (NCA) in the United Kingdom, Singapore Police Force and BKA of Germany to notify further leads.

Earlier, in 2022, CBI initiated Operation CHAKRA, an INTERPOL assisted Global Action to combat and dismantle Organized Cyber enabled Financial Crime Networks. Rapid international proliferation of organized cyber enabled financial crimes with victims, accused, suspects, conspirators located across international jurisdictions, requires a globally coordinated law enforcement response. These increasingly sophisticated crimes include crimes like impersonation scams, mail scams, phishing scams, romance scams, lottery scams etc. Large numbers of innocent victims end up losing huge amounts to such scamsters. These organized criminals have global footprints and deploy advanced techniques including data harvesting, customized messages, money mules, remote access software, call center model of operation etc.

As part of operation Chakra-II, the CBI continued its cracked down on cyber-enabled financial crimes, achieving comprehensive success in two more cases.

The first case: In 2022, based upon various inputs, including the one given by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under MHA, the CBI registered case against sophisticated, organised cyber crime being perpetuated on Indian citizens, by foreign scamsters in the name of investment, loan and job opportunities. After carrying out a detailed analysis of the complex web of money trail, CBI recently conducted raids at the locations of the suspects.

The fraudsters, allegedly, exploited various social media platforms and their advertisement portals, encrypted chat applications, SMS to entice victims with promises of lucrative part-time jobs through Ponzi schemes & multi-level marketing initiatives. To evade detection, these criminals utilized a multi-layered approach involving UPI accounts, crypto currencies, and international money transfers.

The fraudsters were foud to be using advertisement tool of a well-known search engine, as well as rented headers to send bulk SMS, thereby creating a web of deception. Victims were lured to deposit funds through UPI accounts, in the hope of high returns. The ill-gotten money was laundered through a complex network of UPI accounts, ultimately converging into crypto currency or gold purchases using falsified credentials.

The CBI identified 137 shell companies engaged in fraudulent activities. A significant number of these entities were registered with the Registrar of Companies in Bangalore. Rigorous field investigations led to the identification of these companies' Directors, most of whom were based in Bangalore. Some of these Directors were also associated with a Bangalore-based payout merchant. This merchant, central to the fraudulent operation, controlled around 16 distinct bank accounts, where huge sum of Rs. 357 crore (approx) was funneled. The funds were then dispersed across various accounts in a deliberate attempt to obscure the trail. Searches conducted in Bangalore, Cochin and Gurugram yielded substantial evidence, shedding light on the alleged activities of the shell companies' Directors.

The association of the accused with a foreign national, has also been detected. Role of two chartered accountants from Bangalore were found in altering Directorships and contact information associated with these fraudulent entities. Searches at their premises led to the recovery of certain documents, email communications, & WhatsApp chats, providing critical insights into their alleged role in facilitating the said foreign national's involvement in these operations.

The second case was registered against unknown individuals on the allegations of Cyber enabled financial crimes targeting Singapore Citizens. The inputs in the matter were received from Singapore Police Force via INTERPOL channels relating to over 300 cyber-enabled frauds against Singapore Citizens involving more than 100 Indian Bank accounts, spread across ten (10) States/UTs. It was further alleged that these criminals employed a variety of cyber techniques, including social engineering methods such as phishing, vishing, smishing, and fraudulent tech support, targeting over 400 Singapore Citizens.

After registering the said case, the CBI unveiled and cracked down on a vast cyber fraud network targeting Singapore nationals. It was found that the accused utilized a variety of cyber techniques, including social engineering methods such as phishing, vishing, smishing, & fraudulent tech support. Exploiting these techniques, the accused made victim transfer funds from Singaporean accounts to various accounts in India. The defrauded funds were then distributed among other accounts or withdrawn by these cyber criminals.

In a rigorous effort, approximately 150 bank accounts were analyzed, and leads on the money trail were identified. A complex network of interconnected entities was reconstructed based on financial communications.

During searches at around at the premises of the accused in 35 locations, including Patna, Kolkata, Lucknow, Varanasi, Chandigarh, Jalandhar, Bhopal, Chennai, Kochi & Madurai, incriminating documents related to identity proofs, fraudulent banking transactions & other crucial evidence were recovered. The operation uncovered multiple gangs involved in targeting Singaporean nationals, and their identities were ascertained during the course of the investigation.