U.S. Embassy in India cancels 2,000 fraudulent visa appointments amid crackdown on Bots

New Delhi: The U.S. Embassy in India has canceled approximately 2,000 visa appointments after discovering widespread fraudulent activities involving bots in its appointment scheduling system.

On March 26, the U.S. Embassy in India posted on X: "Consular Team India is canceling about 2,000 visa appointments made by bots. We have zero tolerance for agents and fixers who violate our scheduling policies. Effective immediately, we are canceling these appointments and suspending the associated accounts’ scheduling privileges. We will continue our anti-fraud efforts. We have zero tolerance for fraud."

This action is part of a broader crackdown on fraudulent visa activities, which has also led to an ongoing investigation by the Delhi Police.

Identifying Fraudulent Activities

The U.S. Consular Team in India detected “bad actors” using automated systems (bots) to secure visa appointments, violating official scheduling policies.

Forgery and Fraudulent Cases

According to the FIR, the accused—comprising visa agents and applicants—conspired to forge documents, including: Bank statements, Educational records, and Employment certificates. These fake documents were used to fraudulently obtain U.S. visas. U.S. authorities flagged 21 cases where applicants submitted false claims with the help of agents and document vendors. Investigators found that applicants were charged anywhere between ₹1 lakh and ₹15 lakh for these illicit services.

Tracking the Fraud

The embassy’s investigation traced IP addresses linked to various consultants and vendors, identifying patterns of fraudulent behavior across multiple applications.

What is Bots?

In the visa application process, bots (automation software) are used to streamline and enhance efficiency in several ways.

Some embassies and visa centers use bots to automate appointment scheduling. Unfortunately, some individuals or agencies also use unauthorized bots to grab appointment slots, making it harder for regular applicants to book them.

Governments and visa agencies use bots to pre-screen applications and check for missing information. AI-driven bots can verify documents, extract data, and flag potential errors before human review.

Many visa websites have chatbots that answer common questions, provide updates, and guide applicants through the process. These bots reduce the need for human customer service representatives.

AI bots can detect patterns of fraudulent applications or fake documents. They help identify suspicious activity, like multiple applications from the same IP address.