Cyber frauds now impersonating top cop

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: It seems even the police are not safe from the Cyber-frauds now. The Cybercrime Police in the city are actively pursuing an individual accused of attempting to commit fraud by creating a fraudulent WhatsApp account impersonating Bengaluru Police Commissioner, B Dayananda.

The perpetrator behind this fraudulent activity is alleged to have created a fake WhatsApp account bearing the name of Police Commissioner B Dayananda and even utilized the Commissioner’s photo as their display picture.

Subsequently, a few messages claiming to be from B Dayananda, the Bengaluru Police Commissioner, were sent to multiple recipients. Upon discovering this fraudulent impersonation, the Cybercrime Police promptly deactivated the counterfeit account.

The accused communicated with the Police Commissioner’s acquaintances, as well as strangers, members of the public, and even fellow police officers.

Investigators suspect that the fraudulent scheme aimed to solicit funds in the Commissioner’s name. According to a complaint filed with the Cybercrime police, a few people received a message saying, "Hi, I'm B Dayananda, Bengaluru City Police Commissioner."

When the recipients responded and greeted him, the sender sought Rs 5000 to Rs 10,000 from them, claiming to be in "urgent need of money."

However, the police said that no one has paid any amount to the impersonator so far.

Bengaluru Police Commissioner Dayananda, a few weeks ago, had begun an online campaign "Cyber tip a day keeps the fraudsters away" to raise awareness regarding forms of cyber frauds among the citizens.