This year has seen an evolution in the modus operandi of cybercrimes, with frauds being executed over several days and money siphoned off in multiple installments, preventing victims from reporting the crime within the golden hour.
Investigators said more new moduses can be expected in the coming year, as scamsters find different ways to evade detection.
The tactic of upgrading their modus operandi allows scammers to defraud victims of larger sums and buy more time to add multiple layers of mule accounts, which hampers investigations and slows down detection, according to the police.
Home Minister G. Parameshwara recently said in the session that the money recovery percentage in cybercrime cases in Karnataka has dropped to 6.2% from 12.6% last year (2024). In 2023, the recovery percentage was 20.2%, according to the data.
Long duration crimes
Shivaling Salakki, programme manager at the Centre of Excellence in Cybersecurity by the Government of Karnataka (CySecK), noted that the State police should scale up detection in long-duration crimes. He also pointed to a dip in cases this year, although the total amount of money lost still matched last year’s figures.
According to the data, Karnataka saw 22,255 cybercrime cases in 2023, with losses amounting to ₹873.29 crore. In 2024, the number rose to 22,478, with financial fraud totalling ₹2,562 crore. Till the end of November this year, 13,000 cases had been registered, with losses of ₹2,038 crore.
The officer attributed the trend to the extent of loss in each case, which has gone up significantly because of long-duration crimes and new methods, where detection and recovery chances are critically low. For instance, credit card scams involving the delivery of mobile phones saw a sudden spike in the first half of this year.
Fraudsters called potential victims claiming their profiles had been selected for a credit card and lured them with attractive offers. When the unsuspecting victims agreed, the fraudsters would send compromised mobile phones, claiming they needed to register through the device itself.
One man, 47 cases
Bengaluru Southeast CEN police investigated one such case and found a single man behind 47 incidents. “He had hired three delivery personnel to execute the job while operating from Surat. He would send compromised mobile phones to the delivery boys and instruct them on where to deliver them,” an investigator told The Hindu.
When the victim received the mobile phone and inserted their SIM card, the fraudster would immediately take control of the device, switch off Gmail passwords, and turn off all notifications from the banks. Through multiple transactions, he would drain the victims’ bank accounts, without the knowledge of the victim.
A senior officer cautioned that with the New Year approaching, such modus operandi are likely to mushroom again in the name of attractive offers.
The golden hour
An officer from the Criminal Investigation Department’s Cybercrime Wing argued that although long-duration scams such as investment frauds have become common and cost victims crores of rupees, OTP-related frauds remain relevant, especially those targeting senior citizens. If such “immediate” frauds are reported on time, the chances of recovery are much higher.
For instance, the Bengaluru Central CEN police successfully recovered the entire amount lost by a senior citizen to credit card fraud last month. A 70-year-old man from Vyalikaval received a call from an unknown person claiming to be an official from a private bank. The caller convinced the senior citizen that his credit card needed to be updated and obtained a series of OTPs. Using these, the fraudster siphoned off ₹1.90 lakh. The senior citizen realised the scam quickly and immediately called the helpline number 1930.
Akshay Hakay Machhindra, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central, told The Hindu that swift communication with the banks helped freeze the account to which the money had been transferred. “Within a week, we were able to claim the amount, and the victim got back the entire sum he had lost,” Mr. Machhindra said.
Published – December 20, 2025 09:05 pm IST
