Part-time job scamPune man loses Rs 96 lakh from bank account after scammer offered him part-time job

By Divya BhatiThe online task scam or part-time job scam is spreading across the country, especially in Pune, Maharashtra. Many people in the city and nearby areas have reported losing money after falling for a part-time job offer they received online. The scammers are contacting people through various social media platforms and duping them of lakhs on the pretext of offering an extra source of income. In a recent case, a man lost nearly Rs 1 crore to these cyber scammers.

According to a report by Pune Times Mirror, scammers cheated a 56-year-old advertisement filmmaker of Rs 96.57 lakh between September 25 and November 5. The victim, a resident of Rambaug colony on Bavdhan-NDA road, received a text message on his mobile offering him a part-time job. When he replied back to the number given in the message, he was asked to join a group on a chat app.

When the victim agreed to the job, the scammers tried to win his trust and paid him Rs 10,000 as a “welcome bonus” and promised him good returns for assessing corporate travel management (CTM) businesses. Later they even suggested he complete some pre-paid tasks to earn more returns and better results. Falling for the words of scammers, the victim made several transfers until he realised he was being cheated when scammers asked for more money.

According to the FIR, the scammers first asked the victim to pay Rs 21,990 in two instalments for pre-paid jobs before assigning him the task of rating and reviewing a travel agency. Scammers then returned Rs 24,809 to the victim. Later, they convinced him to pay Rs 80,000 for eight reviews and gave him Rs 94,840 in total, including the commission.

After some time the scammers asked the victim for Rs 1 lakh for a job and did not give him the money back with the commission. When he asked for it, they demanded Rs 35.25 lakh from him, claiming they would return the whole amount with a higher commission.

However, even after paying the asked amount and completing the given task, the victim did not receive his commission. Instead, the fraudsters urged him to invest more and clear all his debts, including any pending ones.

The victim realized he had been duped when he did not get his money or the commission after his second transfer of Rs 61.32 lakh. Later the scammers even cut off all contact with him when the victim refused to take on any more pre-paid tasks.

The report reveals that the victim made 58 transactions to different bank accounts through net banking, G-Pay, and Paytm services. The cyber police station has registered an FIR.

The case has been filed under sections 419, 420, and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections 66 C and 66 (D) of the Information Technology Act. Following the complaint, the police have also asked the messenger application to share the details of the messages exchanged between the victim and the scammers and also requested the banks for the transaction details.

How to avoid online part-time job scam

People are also advised to be cautious of any online job offers and report any messages that promise part-time jobs online. To avoid such part-time job scams-

• Verify the company’s existence and details by researching it before applying.
• Avoid illegitimate jobs by checking the security measures of websites.
• Trust your gut feeling and avoid offers that seem too good to be true.
• Protect your personal and financial information and do not share it over email, text or phone.
• Do not click any links from unknown numbers or addresses in text messages or emails.
• Do not pay to work or buy anything from the employer.
• Look for signs of poor grammar, spelling or professionalism in the communication and question it.
• Report any suspicious messages or job offers to the authorities or online platforms.