Former Miss India winner put under digital arrest for 2 hours, loses ₹99,000

An Agra model, Shivankita Dixit, lost ₹99,000 after cybercriminals impersonated CBI officers and threatened her with arrest via a WhatsApp call.

An Agra model was digitally arrested by cybercriminals for two hours and lost ₹99,000, according to police on Wednesday. Shivankita Dixit, who has won several beauty pageants, told the police that she received a WhatsApp call from the scammers. They falsely accused her of receiving illegal funds connected to human trafficking and drug trafficking cases, said Assistant Commissioner of Police (Lohamandi) Mayank Tiwari.

Shivankita Dixit claims to be a former Femina Miss India, West Bengal 2017.

The scammers, pretending to be CBI officers, demanded she transfer ₹99,000 to avoid arrest. Believing the threat, she made the payment. Later, she informed her family and realized she had fallen victim to a cyber scam, Tiwari added.

Shivankita claims to be a former Femina Miss India, West Bengal 2017.

What is digital arrest?

The term "digital arrest" refers to a new type of cyber scam in which scammers impersonate law enforcement officials, such as CBI or customs officers, and threaten victims with arrest via video calls.

In most cases, scammers contact their victims with claims that they are involved in illegal activities. Posing as law enforcement or regulatory officials, they use threats and intimidation to coerce the victims into transferring money or disclosing personal information. This tactic exploits fear and confusion, leveraging the victim's panic to carry out financial fraud.

Rising cases of digital arrest

Multiple recent cases of ‘digital arrest’ have sparked concerns over the emerging cyber menace, in which people are exposed to losing their money to scamsters who play on fear and confusion of the potential victims by posing as regulatory officials.

On Tuesday, a 56-year-old in Mumbai was duped of ₹12.80 crore by scammers who claimed they were Mumbai crime branch officers. The fraudsters told the man he is being placed on digital arrest claiming his Aadhaar card had been used in a human trafficking and money laundering case. The victim transferred the money to the frauds in several tranches over four months, including by foreclosing his fixed deposits, liquidating his retired parents’ savings and selling their shares in private companies.