Siliguri, 10th December: The popular work-from-home model, which gained prominence after the COVID-19 pandemic, has unfortunately become a new avenue for fraudsters to exploit. In a recent case from Siliguri, a woman fell victim to such a scam and was cheated of ₹2.24 lakhs.
The woman filed a complaint with Siliguri Cyber Crime after discovering that she had been deceived by fraudsters posing as work-from-home employers.
According to the complaint, the woman received an unsolicited message on her phone from an unknown number (7099536983), offering a work-from-home opportunity. The scammers initially gained her trust by paying her ₹1,000 after completing the first task. She was then added to a Telegram group.
The fraudsters promised to pay her ₹14,000 if she deposited ₹7,000. Believing the offer to be legitimate, the woman made the payment. However, the scam continued with the fraudsters asking her to deposit more money to access her supposed earnings. In total, she lost ₹2,24,500.
When she tried to recover her money, the scammers demanded more deposits. Realizing she had been defrauded, the woman reported the incident to the police. Authorities have urged the public to be cautious of any unsolicited offers or calls and to report such cases immediately.