Rise of Cyber crime, Nigerian gang & how to avoid it

By BK Mishra

The convergence of computer network and telecommunications facilitated by the digital technologies has given birth to a common space called ‘cyberspace’. This cyberspace has become a platform for a galaxy of human activities which converge on the internet. The cyberspace has, in fact, become the most happening place today. Internet is increasingly being used for communication, commerce, advertising, banking, education, research and entertainment.
There is hardly any human activity that is not touched by the internet. Therefore, Internet has something to offer to everybody and in the process it only increases and never diminishes. The ‘cyber manthan’ has bestowed many gifts to humanity but they come with unexpected pitfalls. It has become a place to do all sort of activities which are prohibited by law. It is increasingly being used for pornography, gambling, trafficking in human organs and prohibited drugs, hacking, infringing copyright, terrorism, violating individual privacy, money laundering, fraud, software piracy and corporate espionage, to name a few.
Well, the new medium which has suddenly confronted humanity does not distinguish between good and evil, between national and international, between just and unjust, but it only provides a platform for the activities which take place in human society. Law as the regulator of human behavior has made an entry into the cyberspace and is trying to cope with its manifold challenges
Though since 2000 the IT Act is in place in India for curbing cyber crimes, but the problem is that still this statute is more on papers than on execution because lawyers, police officers, prosecutors and Judges feel handicapped in understanding its highly technical terminology
Cyber crime has become a profession and the demographic of typical cyber criminal is changing rapidly, from bedroom-bound geek to the type of organized gangster more traditionally associated with drug-trafficking, extortion and money laundering.
It has become possible for people with comparatively low technical skills to steal thousands of rupees a day without leaving their homes. In fact, to make more money than can be made selling heroin (and with far less risk), the only time the criminal need leave his PC is to collect his cash. Sometimes they don’t even need to do that.
In most of the cases involving Phishing, Malware and Social Engineering, and of course herbal Seed Nigerian Gang are found to be involved.
Between October 2016 and March 2017 there was an approximately 400 % Rise in Phishing attack ,With the government pushing for a Digital India and cashless society ,the threat of Cyber crime and phishing is more real than ever ,Malware ,phishing and social engineering are common techniques used by online scammer to dupe people
According to security agencies, there is a complete shift in the modus operandi of these Nigerian web gangs. The scamsters lure gullible targets via social networking sites such as Face book. ‘They then pose as diplomats or MNC executives and entice their targets to invest in a global venture, which actually does not exist. ‘Interestingly, all dealings are done at high-secured areas such as airport and five-star hotels to give an impression of being high-flyers and avoid the risk of getting into trouble
‘There is no fixed narrative. Depending upon the profile of the target, the gang traps them. In the herbal seeds scam, the victim is approached online as a representative of an overseas pharmaceutical firm looking to source herbal seeds from local farmers through an agent. They promise the victim huge returns if they pay the agent upfront for the seeds. According to the police, there are several online gangs running scams to procure seeds with medicinal values that can cure diseases, including cancer The trap is so perfect that Its difficult to sense any foul play..
Online forums like OLX and Quickr has also become another domain of these Nigerians gang The gang would display pictures of high-end cars valued and offer to sell it for Very less price to dispel doubts arising in the mind of the victims the gang used to carefully craft a plausible narrative The Modus operandi of such gangs are ,One of the gang member would pose as a seller and claim that he was out of the country on emergency and would pass the details of another gang member who in turn would pose as a custom official of An International Airport. The fake custom officer would insist that the buyer transfer cash towards the parking fee and custom clearance before he inspects the vehicle. Once the cash of about is transferred the gang’s phone would go off and the buyer would realize his mistake. Most of the arrested Nigerians have been found to have been over staying their business and education visas in the country.. And work in nexus with a local youth or even Youth of North eastern Region who helps them with their Bank Accounts and logistics.

Stopping the problem
The reality is that most of Internet criminals are rarely caught, they generally use fake identies and the number used for communication are taken on fake identities Another eluding technique used is the changing of the emails, which are involved in virus attacks and “phishing” emails so that the pattern cannot be recognized. An individual can do their best to protect themselves simply by being cautious and careful and by following below listed points:
1) Avoid online banking, shopping, entering credit card details, etc if the network is not properly secured.
2) Check your online account frequently and make sure all listed transactions are valid
3) Be extremely wary of e-mails asking for confidential information. Never ever click on a link given in a spam e-mail
4) Always delete spam e-mails immediately and empty the trash box to prevent clicking on the same link accidentally
5)Beware of lotteries that charge a fee prior to delivery of your prize
6) While using a credit card for making payments online, check if the website is secure as the CVV will also be required for the payment
7)Notify your bank/credit card issuer if you do not receive the monthly credit card statement on time. If a credit card is misplaced or lost, get it cancelled immediately
8) Do not respond to lottery messages or call on the numbers provided in the text messages
9) Do not provide photocopies of both sides of the credit card to anyone. The card verification value (CVV), which is required for online transactions, is printed on the reverse. Anyone can use the card for online purchases if they get that information
10) Do not click on links in e-mails seeking details of your account, they could be phishing e-mails from fraudsters. Most reputed companies will ask you to visit their website directly
11) Do not give any information to people seeking credit card details over the phone
12) Do not respond to messages asking to send whether a given account no, is yours or not.
13) Do not respond to call stating your ATM is blocked or de activated and asking for details. Remember bank don’t ask for sensitive details over phone
14) Do not make friends with strangers on Face book, and never ever share your Pictures with any strangers
15) At least do not share your Birth Year in Face book
16) You can report to Facebook directly if someone is pretending to be you, through Face book Report

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