CBI recovers Rs 190 cr in computer tech support fraud case

Tribune News Service

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New Delhi, October 16

The CBI has recovered assets worth Rs 190 crore during its searches against six companies booked for targeting Microsoft customers through a technical support scam.

Claiming that the agency has been collaborating with its counterparts in other countries for investigating the case, CBI officials said the probe had received praise from the United States’ Department of Justice.

CBI spokesperson RK Gaur said, “During the agency’s searches on September 17, the sleuths also seized gold worth Rs 55 lakh, cash totalling Rs 25 lakh and a plethora of digital evidence indicating alleged nefarious activities of the six accused companies based in Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.”

He said the agency was collaborating “with the US agencies and authorities of other friendly countries” against the fraudsters, who allegedly took remote control of computers of users by sending them a pop-up message of malware presence on their systems.

Giving details of the modus operandi of the fraudsters, the officials said, “Once the user dialled the number given on the pop-up, he was connected to call centre executives who demanded huge sums to clean the non-existent malware and also installed unnecessary damaging softwares of the users’ computers.”

The central agency conducted searches at the premises of accused companies – New Delhi-based Softwill Infotech Private Limited and Saburi TLC Worldwide Services Pvt. Ltd, Jaipur-based Innovana Think labs Limited and Systweak Software Private Limited, Noida-based Benovellient Technologies Private Limited, Noida and Gurugram-based Saburi Global Services Pvt Ltd., the CBI said in a statement.

The searches were spread across various locations including Jaipur, Delhi, Noida, Gururgam, Faridabad and Mainpuri (Uttar Pradesh) at the premises of private companies and residential premises of accused persons in an on-going investigation in the case, Gaur said.