Hyderabad: How a woman recovered Rs 97,000 by reporting cybercrime within ‘golden hour’
The golden hour refers to the first 72 hours of the initial phase of investigation where timely actions such as securing evidence and interviewing witnesses
By Newsmeter Network Published on 25 July 2024 1:03 PM GMT
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Hyderabad: A woman who lost almost a Rs lakh to online fraud managed to recover the money for reporting the crime to the police within the ‘golden hour’.
Due to the timely complaint, The police managed to recover and give back the stolen amount without a petition, an FIR, or a court order.
What is the golden hour in crimes?
The golden hour refers to the first 72 hours of the initial phase of investigation where timely actions such as securing evidence and interviewing witnesses – in case of cybercrime, reporting dubious bank accounts – can make or break a case. Reporting the crime during this time greatly increases the chances of recovering money lost from fraud.
The complaint was made on July 11 by a female government employee from Hyderabad who approached the cybercrime police station. Even though it was late hours, night duty police officer B Sandeep responded immediately and registered an online complaint and also sent notice to the Merchant Locon Solutions (Housing.com) and blocked the transaction of Rs 97,312.
Locon Solutions gave a reply that they had initiated the refund and on Thursday the same amount was sent back to the victim’s account without any petition, an FIR or a court order.
How to protect oneself from online fraud
- Never respond to suspicious emails with embedded links in messages.
- Don’t entertain calls asking you to update or verify KYC documents without proper authentication. The scammer might say your account has been compromised and the KYC is pending. Bank officials, financial institutions, the RBI and any genuine entity never ask customers to share confidential information such as username, password and credit card details.
- Immediately change your passwords/CVV/PIN if you have accidentally revealed your credentials.
- Phishing calls generally try to create fear by using fraudulent phone numbers, text messages, voice-altering software and social engineering to lure users and most people to give their sensitive information. However, if you have any genuine doubt about the safety of your interests, it is advisable to physically visit your bank/finance institution.
- Victims of cybercrime are advised to report the same immediately by dialling the cybercrime helpline number 1930 or WhatsApp 8712665171 by visiting the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal.
