Odisha: Crime Branch freezes accounts of suspected hackers

BHUBANESWAR: The state Crime Branch, probing the hacking of the WhatsApp account of Manoj Patnaik, chief executive officer of Odisha Computer Application Centre (OCAC), has frozen the accounts of suspected hackers and is planning to send a team to Bengaluru for further investigation.
"The investigators have come to know that the hackers were operating from Bengaluru. A Crime Branch officer, who talked to one of the hackers using the WhatsApp number (the one used to hack Patnaik's account), traced the location to Bengaluru. The hacker was talking in a different accent, possibly a foreign one. Our team will travel to Bengaluru to nab the hackers and gather more information and evidence connected to the cyber crime," additional director general (Crime Branch) Sanjeeb Panda said.
The cyber criminals took control of Patnaik's WhatsApp number and sent messages to his close contacts seeking urgent financial help for his treatment.
The hackers had given an account number to which Patnaik's close friends deposited around Rs 7 lakh. Patnaik discovered it when one of his friends called him up to enquire about his health and informed him that he has deposited money in his bank account.
"The hackers had transferred the money to several accounts. We have frozen all their accounts," Panda added.
Sources said the hacker was talking in an African accent. The Crime Branch suspects a Nigerian gang or some foreign nationals could be involved in the crime.
The investigators are also looking into how Patnaik fell into the trap and the modus operandi the cyber crooks adopted to access his WhatsApp number.
Cyber experts believe the OCAC CEO might have unwittingly responded to a call or a message sent on his WhatsApp, thus giving access to the hackers. The electronics and IT department, after the hacking incident, sensitised people regarding internet phishing on WhatsApp.