Scammers Impersonate VC Sajjanar—Friend Loses ₹20,000 in Facebook Fraud
Sajjanar made it clear that only one Facebook page was being used officially by him, whereas all others in his name were fake profiles. Hyderabad Cyber Crime police have therefore taken the help of Meta to bring down the fraudulent profiles.
Hyderabad has witnessed a new and shocking case of cybercrime, in which some fraudsters created fake Facebook accounts using the name and photograph of City Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar in order to dupe people. Sajjanar said that anonymous cyber groups operating several fake profiles impersonating him have been sending messages to his friends and acquaintances stating that he is facing urgent financial trouble and needs money right away.
The Commissioner then revealed that one of his close friends became a victim of that impersonation scam and transferred ₹20,000 to the fraudsters, thinking the request was genuine. Sajjanar expressed concern over the growing trend of cybercriminals exploiting the identity of public officials to cheat citizens.
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He immediately issued a strong advisory, asking people not to believe any message seeking money, apparently from him or any well-known personality, and stated that such messages were completely fabricated for fraud. He warned the citizens to block such suspicious links, messages, and video calls and report the activity to the police without any delay.
Sajjanar made it clear that only one Facebook page was being used officially by him, whereas all others in his name were fake profiles. Hyderabad Cyber Crime police have therefore taken the help of Meta to bring down the fraudulent profiles.
He further advised that any person, who receives a message requesting money from an unknown or suspicious account, should first confirm the request directly by calling the person concerned. Similarly, in the event of cyber fraud or suspicious online activity, citizens must immediately call the helpline 1930 or file a complaint on cybercrime.gov.in.
Public awareness and caution will help a lot in not allowing the cybercriminals to play with the innocence of people and their hard-earned money, said Commissioner Sajjanar.
