Coimbatore has reported a spate of fraud cases in which people lost money after trusting job and investment advertisements circulated on social media. In five cases registered over the past few days, the total loss has been estimated at Rs 81.36 lakh.
Police said that in the last two days alone, four victims in Coimbatore lost Rs 41.74 lakh after being approached through offers branded as part-time work, Bitcoin investment, online investment schemes and overseas job opportunities.
According to investigators, fraudsters promise easy earnings such as working from home for daily income, incentives for posting Google reviews, placements in foreign airline companies, or quick high returns through cryptocurrency and online investments. Victims are then persuaded to transfer money in multiple instalments to bank accounts shared by the suspects.
After receiving the funds, the promised job or investment returns do not materialise, police said. In some instances, scammers build trust by paying small amounts for a period before carrying out a larger fraud.
Cybercrime police have urged the public not to pay money without verifying the authenticity of social media advertisements. They also warned against sharing personal or banking details based on promises of high profit, high salary or easy work, and advised reporting suspicious ads to the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal or cybercrime police immediately.
