Cops sound warning on fake Aarogya Setu app

Bhubaneswar: The commissionerate police on Wednesday cautioned citizens against unknown Pakistan-based cyber crooks for circulating fake and malicious Aarogya Setu app on social media. Police advised people to download the app only from authentic sources like http://Mygov.in, Apple or Android playstore.
“We have not received any such complaints in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. But we are alert after coming across instances in some places outside the state where Pakistan-based cyber frauds used the malicious software to hack and steal data from phones and systems,” commissioner of police Sudhanshu Sarangi said.
The police advisory said some users are receiving SMS, WhatsApp message or links on their email IDs to download the Aarogya Setu app. “We appeal to people to ignore such unsolicited invitations or sources to download the app. The app should be downloaded from Google and Apple playstore,” the advisory said.
Police have advised people to immediately delete suspicious links and messages and go for factory reset of their mobile phones. “These links are malicious. Once clicked, people will be directed to an App called ChatMe on the screen. This is being used by Pakistan-based groups to take away data,” the advisory read.
The Centre launched the app on April 2. It was designed in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic to collect data on one’s location and link it with the ICMR’s database of Covid-19 tests to warn a user if an infected person is in close proximity. Sources said over 10 lakh people have already downloaded the app in Odisha.