Panaji: With senior citizens and retired people increasingly becoming victims of cybercrime, Goa police have directed banks to temporarily pause fund transfers initiated by senior citizens to unknown or random accounts and to verify with the senior citizen the purpose of the transfer to prevent them from becoming victims of cyber fraud.Goa cybercrime police organised a coordination meeting with representatives of various banking institutions to strengthen cooperation between law enforcement agencies and banks, expedite cybercrime investigations and enhance preventive measures against financial cyber fraud. The meeting was chaired by IGP Keshav Ram Chaurasia.During the meeting, police directed banks to question a senior citizen visiting bank premises if they transfer a huge amount to an unknown account and pause the transfer till the transaction is verified as genuine to avoid their getting scammed by cyber fraudsters.Goa police said delayed bank responses in cybercrime cases slow investigations and hinder the timely arrest of criminals.A senior police officer said financial institutions were directed not to share data with cyber fraudsters or unauthorised agencies, while their representatives denied sharing any information with third parties.Police directed financial institutions to monitor huge sudden deposits in the bank account of any individual and immediately report to police.Police said that people have to be cautious while investing online.“If anyone downloads an app of any company for investment, then the person should ensure that the money is going to the company’s account. If the money is being sent to multiple accounts, the person should know that it’s a fraud and should not transfer any more money.”As of now, cyber fraudsters have cheated Goans to the tune of Rs 100 crore. Police sources said that this is just the official figure, but the actual amount could be much more. Last year, cyber fraudsters cheated Goans to the tune of Rs 101 crore.Police investigations have revealed that cyber fraudsters usually operate from abroad, making it difficult to arrest them.
