Ahmedabad, Gujarat: A resident of Gandhinagar, originally from Telangana, has reported losing ₹11.39 lakhs to a money-for-task scam in March 2023. The victim, Suresh Ankam (37), filed a complaint with the Cybercrime police station in Gandhinagar on Saturday.
Ankam, who works for a private company in Randesan, received a WhatsApp message on March 13, 2023, offering him the opportunity to earn money by completing tasks related to reviewing Google Maps. The message promised a payment of ₹50 for each completed task.
Tempted by the offer, Ankam completed six tasks and received a total of ₹300. However, he was then enticed to participate in a “prepaid task” that required him to make an upfront payment for registration. The message assured him of substantial returns upon completing the task.
As per the First Information Report (FIR), Ankam made a total of ₹11.39 lakhs in 20 transactions between March 13 and March 17, 2023. When he neither received the promised returns nor any tasks, but was instead pressured to pay even more, Ankam realized he was being defrauded. He reported the incident to the cybercrime helpline on March 22, 2023.
Nearly a year later, the Cybercrime police have registered a complaint against unidentified individuals under sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) related to breach of trust and cheating, along with relevant sections of the Information Technology Act.
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