Click Here For Written Result : Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2024

GS Paper II & III

News Excerpt:

‘Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos emerge hub of organized financial crimes targeting Indians’.

More about the news:

• Nearly half of financial frauds targeting Indians are originating from the three south-east Asian countries of Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos,
• Financial crime hotspots remained active in India, but the quantum of money lost to south-east Asia origin frauds was much more.

Cases of financial crime in India:

• As per the Chief Executive Office, in the first four months of the year, Indians had lost over ₹1,776 crore in 89,054 cases of financial crimes such as digital arrest (in which someone impersonates a government official — were also being reported and as many as 4,599 complaints of this fraud were reported to between January-April), stock market scam, investment scam and romance or dating scam and there had been a “spurt in the organized crime from south-east Asia.”
• “Out of the total complaints on the portal, 85% complaints pertain to financial crimes, out of which 48% originate from south-east Asia.
• Out of the total financial scams originating from south-east Asia, the maximum number of complaints — 62,687 were related to investment scam.
• It lures people mainly through social media. The victim is told to sit at home and earn money, which ends up losing a large amount.
• The financial crime hotspots in Jharkhand, Haryana, Rajasthan and West Bengal were still active and are expanding. 
• The recent spate of bomb threat emails sent to schools, hospitals and airports in various parts of the country, have been sent using VPNs (virtual private network) and investigating agencies were taking help from various countries to trace the culprits as per the Chief Executive Officer.

Steps taken by the government to curb it:

• With the effort of I4C and State police, a total of 3.25 lakh mule bank accounts, 595 apps and more than 3,000 URLs had been blocked in the past four months. 
• Additionally, 5.3 lakh SIM cards, 80,848 IMEI numbers had been suspended since July 2023 and 3,401 WhatsApp groups had been taken down in the past two months.

Way forward: 

• International Cooperation: Strengthen cooperation and information-sharing mechanisms with law enforcement agencies in Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos to track down and prosecute individuals involved in organized financial crimes targeting Indians.
• Awareness Campaigns: Launch extensive awareness campaigns to educate the public, especially vulnerable groups, about the tactics used in financial scams originating from Southeast Asia. This should include raising awareness about the risks associated with online investment schemes and romance scams promoted through social media.
• Regulatory Measures: Enhance regulatory measures to monitor and regulate online platforms and apps that are frequently used to perpetrate financial frauds. This may involve stricter licensing requirements for fintech companies and increased scrutiny of online investment platforms.
• Capacity Building: Provide training and resources to law enforcement agencies to effectively investigate and prosecute cases of financial fraud. This could involve specialized training programs on cybercrime investigation techniques and cooperation with international counterparts.
• Technological Solutions: Invest in advanced technological solutions, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms, to detect and prevent financial crimes in real-time. This could help in identifying suspicious transactions and patterns of fraudulent behavior more efficiently.