January 23: The police have appealed to the general public to be aware of fraudulent activities on social media with people giving fake assurance of services in return for money.

The police warned that some ‘so called’ service providers were even demanding vital documents such as citizenship and passport on various pretexts, and urged the public to be highly alert to such  sensitive issue.

The Kathmandu Police Range has notified that banking fraud via digital medium has been rising of late. Gangs of fraudsters are active and they have been demanding information about bank balance, citizenship certificates and passport documents for people aspiring to go for foreign employment or to study abroad, the police cautioned.    
“The fraudsters were even found posting advertisements on social networking sites about the foreign employment opportunity and demanding money along with important personal documents. So, the time has come to stay aware about this,” said Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dan Bahadur Karki. Such people have been asking the service seekers to deposit money in the accounts of unknown persons and then they dupe those people after receiving the amount.

SSP Karki further shared that the fraudsters were found using the documents received in such manner to make new SIM cards of the phone number on the pretext of losing their phone set and then would download mobile Apps to get access to OPT code.

With the unauthorized access to OTP code, swindlers were drawing money via mobile banking without knowledge of the victims.    
"Ten years back, there were no such crimes. With the increase in the use of information technology, such new crimes have been recorded. The police force is receiving such complaints of late," SSP Karki added.    
The police has strongly urged one and all not to share important information and documents via social networking sites and Apps to any unacquainted person. Similarly, the people in general are also requested not to share the PIN number of e-banking facility.    
Only legal medium- the offices authorized and run by government- should be trusted to share information and documents before going to foreign job and study, SSP Karki added. -- RSS