Surat: A 32-year-old accountant in Surat allegedly lost ₹2.09 lakh after falling victim to an online task scam in which fraudsters promised commissions for rating hotels and completing assignments online.
The fraud reportedly took place between October 14 and October 22. According to the complaint registered at Dindoli police station, the accused approached the victim through social media, offering opportunities to earn money by performing simple online tasks.
Initially, the accountant was asked to rate hotels listed on Google Maps and received ₹120 as payment. This initial payout allegedly helped the fraudsters gain his confidence before persuading him to invest larger sums for assignments promising higher earnings.
The victim was subsequently introduced to other schemes, including so-called “sharing-training” tasks and a “group-profit” plan. The fraudsters allegedly directed him to transfer money to multiple bank accounts and UPI IDs, citing different reasons for the payments.
Trusting their assurances of attractive returns, the accountant continued transferring funds. However, when he attempted to withdraw ₹2.09 lakh, the accused allegedly demanded an additional ₹2.20 lakh to unlock the next task.
The additional payment demand raised suspicions, and the victim realised that he had been cheated. He subsequently approached the police and filed a complaint.
Dindoli police registered a First Information Report (FIR) for cheating and other offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology Act. Further details about the investigation were not provided in the available report.
Online task scams commonly use small initial payouts to establish credibility before encouraging victims to make increasingly large deposits. Users should remain cautious of online earning opportunities that require upfront payments, promise unusually high commissions or demand additional money to release supposed earnings.
