Skip to main content

Don't get fooled by Loan Applications

It is imperative to spread awareness about these fake instant loan applications amongst the masses so that people do not get easily fooled into their tricks.  

One of the latest scams doing the rounds is the instant loan app scam. These loan applications are nothing but well-oiled and organized extortion\rackets being operated from outside India. In July 2023, the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO)  Unit of Delhi Police’s Special Cell has busted various modules of instant loan applications having Chinese connections whereby more than 500 crores have been sent to China through the Hawala route or cryptocurrency. Many poor and gullible people have fallen victim to it and suffered irreversible consequences. The victims have not only lost money but also faced social, mental and psychological trauma due to these fake loan applications which are available on Google Play Store, links to download the app are also sent through email, WhatsApp, Text messages, fantasy games etc. Most common among them are the Hero Rupee, Asan Loan, Money Box,  Loan Gram, TytoCash, Coco Cash, Cashpot, ShinyRupee and  Panda Rupee, Cash Cup, etc Many of these fake loan applications have been banned by the Indian government but still, these keep on operating with impunity. Even though Google keeps on deleting and banning these fake applications, yet, they keep on appearing with some other names. These fake loan applications have a sinister plot and in some parts of India, the victims have even committed suicide due to the unbearable mental pressure put on by the recovery agents/goons.

Once the victims download these free and easily available Chinese loan applications from the Google Play Store, these loan applications ask the users to give them access to their contact lists and pictures and videos stored in the gallery of the phones. Then, the victim is asked to upload their bank account details as well as Aadhar Cards and PAN  cards on these loan applications. Once the victim clicks and accepts the terms and conditions of these loan applications, a certain amount of money as a loan amount is transferred to the victim’s bank accounts. After taking a loan, some of the total amount is deducted as processing fees. If the remaining amount is not paid within the stipulated time the interest and penalties together take the repayment to 200 percent of the loan amount. 

Everything looked hunky-dory till now except for the fact that once a few days have passed, the victims start getting calls and messages on their WhatsApp and phone to repay the loan amount. The tricky catch here is that the amount of money being demanded from the victims is much higher. For instance, if the victim had been given a  loan of Rs. 5000/-, the scamsters usually demand Rs. 9,000/- in return. If the victims start questioning or arguing, the scammers threaten the victims to morph their photos obscenely and make them go viral by sending them to their contacts on the phone or even threaten to upload their vulgar photos and videos on social media platforms to mentally pressure them. The victims are also threatened with sexual assaults and intimidated that their nude morphed pics would be uploaded on adult websites for pornographic customers to call them and harass them. Since these loan app scams had already gotten access to the users’ media gallery and contacts earlier, it becomes very easy for them to manipulate those resources now. As a result, many victims get fearful of a loss of their social reputation and thus, end up meekly complying  with the illegal demands of the fake loan scammers. Some of the users get mentally perturbed due to the social stigma and fall into the vicious debt trap of these scammers. If the victims fail to pay the money, these scammers also start calling the family, friends and acquaintances of the victims and use utterly foul and filthy language to add salt to their wounds If you are a guy, these conmen photoshop you in a news report of a rape case and forward that message to all his contacts. If the borrower is a girl, her photo is morphed into pornographic images and shared with her entire contact list.  Moreover, these culprits start circulating the victim’s phone number as an escort. Their ultimate aim is to instil deep fear and anxiety in the minds of the victims so that they can surrender themselves and end up paying the extortion amounts to these agents. The accused running Chinese applications made a WhatsApp group of the contact details of the victim. The women contacts are sent objectionable messages. All the contacts of the victim are called by their agents who falsely inform them that the loan-taker had made them guarantors. This is the prime modus operandi opted by Chinese nationals to extort money from Indians through these loan applications. Due to fear and stigma, many victims end up paying money to scammers in different bank accounts opened against fake IDs.

 

Since the Indian police have launched a massive crackdown against the handlers of these fake loan applications and a horde of scammers are being arrested daily, these clever scammers are now shifting their recovery call centres to Nepal, Bangladesh and  Pakistan. They entered into agreements with non-bank financial companies (NBFC) like Weekline Investment and Trading Company Limited, Zavron Finance Private Limited for giving out loans. Each entity had floated several applications that were installed,  accessed, used and monitored from cloud-based servers in India and China owned/operated by like Chatter Pros Softwares Private Limited, TYTO Network Technologies Private Limited, Smart Sail Technology Pte Ltd, Elevantic Ecommerce Private Limited, YOLO Network Technologies Private Limited, Mlandai Solutions Private Limited etc. The Chinese scammers used forged documents of Indians and made them dummy directors of those entities while generating proceeds of crime.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mandatory Injunction Not Automatic: Supreme Court Clarifies Scope of Relief Under Section 39 of Specific Relief Act

In a significant clarification on the scope of mandatory injunctions, the Supreme Court in Estate Officer, Haryana Urban Development Authority & Ors. v. Nirmala Devi has held that the grant of a mandatory injunction under Section 39 of the Specific Relief Act, 1963 , is not a matter of right but one of judicial discretion , to be exercised only when a legally enforceable obligation has been clearly breached . ⚖️ Breach Must Be Specific and Proven The Court emphasized that a mandatory injunction , which compels a party to perform a specific act, can be granted only when there is a demonstrable breach of an obligation that is legally binding . "The breach of obligation and performance and compulsion to perform certain acts in relation to such obligation must be specifically established before a mandatory injunction can be granted," the Bench observed. This reinforces that the courts must be satisfied not just about the existence of a duty or obligation, but also th...
Post a Comment
Read more

When Judicial Orders Meet Dishonesty: The Supreme Court's Critical Distinction on Disciplinary Action Against Judges

In a significant observation that challenges long-established judicial doctrine, the Supreme Court of India has articulated a nuanced position on the liability of judges for their judicial orders. While hearing a writ petition filed by a District Judge from Madhya Pradesh who challenged his suspension by the High Court, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant raised a pivotal question: if a judicial order is passed based on dishonest or extraneous considerations rather than mere judicial error , why cannot disciplinary action be initiated? This observation marks an important evolution in the jurisprudence surrounding judicial immunity and disciplinary responsibility. ​ The Case: Factual Background The Supreme Court bench, comprising CJI Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice Vipul Pancholi, examined the suspension of the District Judge immediately before his retirement. Senior Advocate Vipin Sanghi, representing the petitioner, contended that his client possessed an exemplary...
Post a Comment
Read more

Supreme Court Reaffirms "Fraud Unravels Everything" Principle in Landmark Vishnu Vardhan Case

Overview The Supreme Court of India in Vishnu Vardhan @ Vishnu Pradhan vs. The State of Uttar Pradesh & Ors. made a definitive pronouncement on the relationship between fraud and the doctrine of merger. The three-judge bench comprising Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta, and Ujjal Bhuyan held that if a High Court decision upheld by the Supreme Court was obtained through fraud, an aggrieved party may file a civil appeal against the High Court's order rather than seeking review of the Supreme Court's judgment . Legal Context and Background The dispute centered around a parcel of land in Gautam Budh Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, jointly purchased in 1997 by three individuals: Vishnu Vardhan (appellant), Reddy Veeranna, and T. Sudhakar . The land was subsequently acquired by the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (NOIDA) in 2005, forming part of Sector 18, NOIDA . The trio initially pursued joint litigation to protect their interests in the land. However, Reddy allegedly emb...
Post a Comment
Read more