Mumbai man loses Rs 1.3 crore to 'like on YouTube & earn' job fraud

MUMBAI: The west region cyber cops are probing a part time job fraud in which a 47-year-old man working with a marketing company was duped of over Rs 1.33 crore.
The cyber fraudster lured the complainant by promising high earnings for watching and liking YouTube videos, and convinced the complainant to transfer money in 25 different bank accounts between January and March this year.
"The complainant had got a WhatsApp message asking him if he was interested in a part time job that could earn him between Rs 5,000 to Rs 7,000 per day. During the chat, the message sender explained that he would send YouTube videos, and his job would be to watch, like and take its screenshot and send it on the same WhatsApp number. He was asked to pay Rs 5,000 as registration and other fees. He then received a link of a YouTube video and followed instructions. He also received Rs 10,000 in his account," said a police officer.
The accused then asked the complainant to join his Telegram group and said he would be given different tasks to complete which could earn him a huge earning. Convinced, the complainant joined the Telegram group. "He was asked to deposit money as investment and was given different tasks to complete. The accused told him he would make good profit once he completed the tasks," said a police source.
In a job fraud, the accused usually tells the victims that they have a contract to promote certain companies, channels or brands for which they employ people on part time jobs. When the complainant demanded return of his invested money and profit, the fraudster claimed he had not done his job properly and demanded more money. This is when the complainant lodged an FIR. A police probe found that the complainant had sent money in 25 different bank accounts. The accounts were opened in the name of fake companies, said an officer.
DCP Balsing Rajput of the cyber crime wing of the Crime Branch advised citizens against following any message or link received from an unknown person/source. "Generally, accused in such fraud cases give different bank account numbers each time; this should raise suspicion. Moreover, the initial profit in such cases also comes to a victim from a third party or a different account. These are signs of fraud one must be aware of in case anyone gets a part time job message. One must immediately approach the police," said Rajput.