TVM man loses ₹6 cr in trading app scam; Kerala’s rising online fraud cases

Thiruvananthapuram: The cyber department in Kerala has revealed alarming trends in online fraud, indicating that most victims are aged between 30 and 40. Many of those targeted are professionals, including IT experts and doctors, who have fallen prey to various scams.

Types of financial scams

The state has seen a surge in different kinds of online fraud, but the most number of losses have occurred through fake trading apps. According to the Cyber Police, there have been 1,157 cases of trading app fraud reported this year alone.

One such incident involved a victim in Thiruvananthapuram who lost approximately Rs 6 crore through a fraudulent trading app. There have been 1,002 reported fraud cases related to fake job offers from non-existent companies as well. There were also 211 scams linked to FedEx, where criminals impersonated Customs and CBI officials to steal money.

Victim statistics

Here’s a closer look at the demographics of victims this year:

Age groups affected

Profession breakdown

Financial impact

So far this year, online scams have led to losses totaling Rs 635 crore. Rs 88 crore was recovered after reporting the fraud to the police within the stipulated time. The cyber police have frozen 32,807 bank accounts related to this fraud (as of September).