Ludhiana police bust 'largest-ever' international cyber fraud racket; 132 arrested

Ludhiana police on Friday claimed to have busted what is being described as the "largest-ever" cyber fraud racket in the city involving international operatives linked to Europe and North America.

The police arrested 132 people allegedly involved in running fake call centres that targeted foreign nationals through pop-up scams, remote access fraud and bogus bank security alerts.

Acting on credible intelligence inputs, the police conducted simultaneous raids at multiple locations, including commercial premises near Sandhu Tower and Silver Oak recently.

During the operation, Rs 1.07 crore, 98 laptops, 229 mobile phones, and 19 vehicles have been recovered. More than 300 bank accounts have been frozen, with more under process.

Income Tax authorities have been informed and joined the investigation.

Addressing a press conference, Police Commissioner Ludhiana Swapan Sharma said the accused were operating sophisticated cyber fraud networks using electronic devices to target foreign nationals. Victims would receive fake pop-up warnings, purportedly from Microsoft, alerting them about a virus attack or security threat on their computers. The pop-up displayed a customer care number while simultaneously causing the victim’s computer screen to freeze or become unresponsive.

When victims contacted the number, their calls were redirected to fraudsters through X-Lite Software, an internet-based dialer used for routing inbound calls. Each call centre location reportedly had 8–10 teams, with every team comprising 6–7 members. These teams included designated “openers” and “closers.”

The “openers” would persuade victims to download remote access software such as UltraViewer, enabling the fraudsters to gain control of the victim’s computer system. Victims were then made to run fake diagnostic scans during which fabricated warnings appeared on screen, claiming issues such as compromised email accounts, hacked bank accounts, child pornography alerts, and other false security threats.

The fraudsters subsequently convinced victims to open their email accounts, banking applications, and other confidential data on their systems. Through remote access and screen sharing, this sensitive information became accessible to the accused.

Victims were then falsely informed that their bank accounts were unsafe and were told that the call would be transferred to a bank representative. The “closers,” impersonating bank officials, would convince victims to part with money through multiple methods, including doorstep cash collection, doorstep gold pickup after purchase of gold, purchase and sharing of Amazon or Apple gift cards, and wire transfers to fake foreign accounts.

Police said the money that was cheated was eventually routed to India through hawala channels, cryptocurrency transactions, and other illegal financial mechanisms.

Preliminary investigation has revealed that each operator handled around 8–10 calls daily. Employees working at the illegal call centres were reportedly paid fixed salaries along with performance-based incentives.

Further investigation is underway into digital evidence, money trail analysis, proceeds of crime, hawala transactions, cryptocurrency links, ownership and tenancy verification of premises used for the call centres, and identification of other accused persons and facilitators connected to the racket.

The Ludhiana Police Commissionerate reiterated its commitment to taking strict and sustained action against cyber criminals, organised fraud syndicates, and illegal financial networks operating in the state.