A cybercrime was committed in Bhopal by someone posing as a Bhopal collector; police launch an investigation

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) [India]September 21 (ANI): Madhya Pradesh Police have registered a case against an unidentified person in connection with a cyber crime in which the person posed as Bhopal Collector through a social media platform, an official said on Saturday.

The accused had sent a message to the complainant through WhatsApp messenger, posing as Bhopal Collector Kaushlendra Vikram Singh and demanding money. The accused had also uploaded the Bhopal Collector’s photograph as the profile picture of his WhatsApp account.

“Cybercrime is emerging in new forms today. Fraudsters are using new methods through social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Telegram and WhatsApp and cheating people. Sometimes they impersonate celebrities, sometimes they impersonate common citizens and sometimes they impersonate administrative officials. Recently, a case has come to light where a WhatsApp message was sent in the name of Collector Bhopal and cybercrime was committed,” said Shailendra Singh Chouhan, Deputy Superintendent of Police (ADCP), Crime Branch Bhopal.

The complainant lodged a complaint about the incident and immediate action was taken. The police launched an investigation and soon uncovered the case, he said.

“We have found a few things that suggest that the person in whose name the SIM card is registered is not the owner of this WhatsApp account. We have verified this and will soon clarify the matter once we get technical details,” Chouhan added.

When asked what message had been sent to the complainant, the official replied that the content was not important, but that the problem was that the message had been sent on behalf of an administrative official.

“We are investigating the number we have received. We will seek further information on the same through WhatsApp and arrest the main accused,” he added. (ANI)