Guwahati = New Jamtara ??

The recent police crackdown on cybercrime in Guwahati has shed light on the city’s alarming transformation into a hotspot for cybercriminal activities, resembling the infamous Jamtara, known for its cybercrime operations. This revelation underscores the growing prevalence of cybercrime in the northeastern region of India.I

In a significant crackdown on illegal call centers, the Guwahati Police have dismantled eight such illicit operations involved in scamming people within India and abroad. These fraudulent call centers would impersonate technical support staff to deceive their victims. The police have taken into custody three individuals believed to be the masterminds behind these scams, as well as 191 others, including 47 women.

Acting on specific intelligence, the Guwahati Police’s Crime Branch conducted raids at various locations in Guwahati on the night of September 14 and the morning of September 15. During these operations, they uncovered eight illegal call centers operated by scammers. According to police officials, these fraudulent activities had been ongoing for the past two years, with proceeds being transferred using Bitcoin and hawala channels. The call centers employed individuals from different parts of the country.

The police also seized 164 desktop computers, 90 laptops, 26 mobile phones, and various other electronic devices during the raids. Guwahati Police Commissioner Diganta Borah revealed that the scammers would typically employ tactics such as using pop-ups on computers or making phone calls, pretending to represent reputable companies or organizations. They would then create a sense of urgency by falsely claiming that the victim’s bank account was compromised, their computer contained a virus, or their social media account had been hacked.

Subsequently, the scammers would instruct the victims to install remote desktop software on their computers or phones, thereby gaining access to their bank accounts and stealing personal information by planting malware on the devices, as Borah explained. The scammers primarily operated at night, targeting mainly foreign nationals, and they chose inconspicuous locations for their call centers to evade public and police attention.

Commissioner Borah also noted that educated unemployed individuals were often recruited for these call centers through social media platforms, where they would receive training for their roles. Two of the masterminds attempted to flee Guwahati after becoming aware of the police operation but were apprehended with the assistance of Bajali police in Bhabanipur, Bajali district, on Thursday night.

The arrested masterminds were identified as Debajyoti Dey alias David (31), Rajan Sidana (39) from Ludhiana, Punjab, and Divyam Arora (31) from Delhi. Further investigations into this illegal call center operation are ongoing.

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