Jamtara fraudsters target doctors, medical workers during pandemic

Cyberabad: Jamtara, a district in the state of Jharkhand, has become infamous for credit card scams, even inspiring a popular Netflix series. Now, the fraudsters of Jamtara are taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic and targeting doctors and health care workers.

The Cyberabad cyber crime police have received several complaints from doctors and medicos who are being cheated in the name of Paytm KYC updates. The police have issued an advisory warning medical workers of such fraudulent acts.

As doctors and other medical staff are working round-the-clock during the pandemic, the cyber fraudsters are taking advantage of the situation and exerting pressure on them to share their bank and card details.

The fraudsters are asking them to download various remote access applications like Team Viewer Quick Support App, Any Desk App, and Inkwire App among others on their mobile phone. Through these apps, the fraudsters are able to access their phones and withdraw huge amounts. Sometimes the fraudsters send phishing links and cheat them to the tune of lakhs of rupees, said the police.

On 10 July, the Cyberabad cyber cell received a complaint from a staff nurse of Continental Hospital. On 9 July, she received a call saying that her Paytm wallet verification was pending and the caller asked her to install the Team Viewer Quick Support app on her mobile phone. She was on duty and installed the app in a hurry. She also shared the ID number with the caller. An amount of Rs. 1,49,868 was deducted from her Bank of Baroda account and Rs. 19,999 from her Axis Bank account.

Mr. Sajjjanar said, “We request people to use a separate phone for banking purposes. Doctors and other health care workers who use Paytm are requested to read the instructions provided under “Account Safety Tips” on the Paytm website. We also advise them not to use smartphones for banking.”