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In major loan app racket bust, Maharashtra police find China, Dubai links

The police claim that numerous unlicensed microfinance organisations have created online loan applications. People are randomly called by individuals posing as employees of these apps and asked to download the app on their mobile devices. Once the software has been downloaded, its users have access to the phone's contact list, photos, and videos.

Mirror Now Digital

Updated Sep 30, 2022, 22:24 IST

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Pune: A significant internet extortion ring using "lending applications" has been discovered by Pune City Police, and it is believed that its "masterminds" are from China and Dubai, The Indian Express reported.

The Cyber police station recently shut down two fraudulent contact centres in Bengaluru while looking into two accusations of online extortion against lending app operators made by victims in Pune. 18 people have been detained thus far in relation to the ring.

Data on about one lakh Indian residents who may have been the target of loan app scammers has been found by police.

Police have seen a multifold increase in loan app offences in the meanwhile. According to police, 699 reports of such offences were made to cyber police stations in 2020, and 928 were made the following year.

Up to August 2022, there have been 3,151 reports of persons being harassed by loan app employees filed with the Cyber police station.

Amitabh Gupta, the police commissioner for Pune, stated during a press conference on Friday that during the previous two months, 25 complaints related to loan applications were averaged daily.

According to the police, the customer receives an immediate loan between Rs 500 and Rs 7,000 after downloading the app. Sometimes, even when users of the programme do not request a loan, money is transferred to their bank accounts.

Within a week, loan app employees begin calling customers and seeking repayment of the loan with interest rates ranging from 30% to 300%. If the repayment is not made, the operatives alter the loan app users' photos to include explicit material and distribute it to the others on their contact list.

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