15 hrs ago
Cyber fraud victims and innocent account holders face frozen funds
When someone loses money to an online scam, calling 1930 quickly may help police stop the money.
However, the stolen money may pass through several bank accounts.
This can make it difficult to decide which victim should receive money first.
Sometimes, innocent people have their bank accounts frozen because criminals used their accounts or paid them unknowingly.
A new system lets victims request their money back.
Another system lets innocent account holders ask for their accounts to be unfrozen.
Mumbai Police said thousands of accounts were unblocked through this process.
Police are also being asked to freeze only the suspicious amount instead of the whole account when possible.
One shop owner in Shirdi needed almost two months to regain access after several agencies blocked his account.
India’s 1930 cybercrime helpline can help freeze transferred money during the “golden hour.”
The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre launched the Money Restoration Mechanism and Grievance Redressal Mechanism in June.
Mumbai Police said Rs 3.97 crore was returned to victims in 6,096 cases by August 20.
Competing claims and complex money trails can force victims to seek legal orders to recover funds.
The grievance portal helped resolve 2,169 of 2,337 complaints from account holders whose funds were blocked.
- Who
- Cyber-fraud victims, innocent account holders, police, banks and the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre.
- What
- New mechanisms are being used to return traced fraud proceeds and unfreeze accounts wrongly blocked during investigations.
- Where
- The mechanisms operate in India, with reported cases involving Mumbai and a shopping mart in Shirdi.
- When
- The portals were launched in June; Mumbai Police provided figures covering the period through August 20.
- Why
- Fraud money can move through multiple accounts, creating competing claims and causing innocent account holders to lose access to their funds.
Prioritize Fraud Recovery
Protect Innocent Account Holders
How widely accounts should be frozen
Prioritize Fraud Recovery
Freezing accounts along the money trail can help secure funds for cyber-fraud victims and identify connected transactions.
Protect Innocent Account Holders
Cyber expert Ritesh Bhatia said freezing accounts further down the chain, especially over small transfers, can cause unnecessary hardship to people uninvolved in the fraud.
Full account freeze or limited lien
Prioritize Fraud Recovery
Investigators may block accounts when they appear linked to fraud cases, including cases involving multiple victims or agencies.
Protect Innocent Account Holders
Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti said investigators should place a lien on the suspected amount rather than freeze an entire account when possible, allowing access to the remaining funds.
Recovery process
Prioritize Fraud Recovery
Victims may need to provide bank details and, when applicable, a court order to request refunds through the Money Restoration Mechanism.
Protect Innocent Account Holders
Account holders who say they were wrongly blocked can use the Grievance Redressal Mechanism, which links them with their bank and police for verification and possible unfreezing.
Key facts
- Relevant helpline
- 1930, which can help stop the money trail when contacted during the “golden hour.”
- New portals
- The Money Restoration Mechanism and Grievance Redressal Mechanism were launched by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre in June.
- Mumbai funds blocked
- Money was blocked in 24,860 instances involving Rs 18.27 crore between the portal launch and August 20.
- Amount classified refundable
- Rs 16.18 crore was classified as refundable, with no competing claim.
- Money returned
- Rs 3.97 crore was returned to victims in 6,096 instances.
- Unfreezing complaints
- Of 2,337 grievances registered in Mumbai, 2,169 were resolved with accounts unblocked.
- Documentation threshold
- For amounts below Rs 50,000 in a particular account, police said an FIR or court order is not required; amounts above Rs 50,000 require an FIR.
Quotes
Ritesh Bhatia
Cyber expert commenting on the hardship caused by freezing accounts further down fraud transaction chains
“While it makes sense to block the first two layers where a large chunk is transferred from a victim’s account. But to keep going ahead and even blocking accounts where a few thousands have been transferred is just causing harassment to the common people. Between the banks and police, they should resolve the issue.”
indianexpress.com
Sources
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