The Supreme Court has taken a serious view on the digital arrest scams, seeking a response from the centre and the Central Bureau of Investigation. The apex court took suo motu cognisance of rising cases of digital arrest scams, where fraudsters impersonate law enforcement agencies or judicial authorities to extort money from citizens, particularly senior citizens.

 

 

The action was taken on a complaint received from a 73-year-old woman from Ambala in Haryana, who alleged that scammers used forged Supreme Court orders to confine her in a so-called digital arrest and extort more than one crore rupees. 

 

 

The Court observed that using fake court orders strikes at the very foundation of the public trust held by the judiciary, and has to be viewed seriously. In her complaint addressed to Chief Justice BR Gavai, the woman claimed that the fraudsters produced a fake order purportedly issued by the former Chief Justice. 

 

 

Digital arrest scams refer to a kind of online fraud where cyber criminals impersonate law enforcement or government officials, like the police or CBI, to intimidate victims and to pressure them into parting with money.