You receive a call. The caller claims to be a CBI officer, or a customs official, or a police officer. They tell you a parcel in your name has been intercepted containing drugs, or that your Aadhaar has been used for money laundering. They ask you to stay on a video call — to be "digitally present" before them — and not leave your home, contact anyone, or disconnect the call. This is a "digital arrest." It is completely fake. And it has extracted crores of rupees from thousands of victims across India.
The Hon'ble Supreme Court took up this issue suo motu, describing it as a matter of grave concern, and has now issued a comprehensive set of directions to address the menace.
What the Court Directed
- RBI to create a Standard Operating Procedure for banks to identify and freeze transactions linked to digital arrest fraud — including rapid response protocols when a customer reports a fraud in progress
- Operationalise grievance redressal and money restoration mechanisms — because the biggest harm to victims is the irreversible transfer of funds before they realise they have been scammed
- Inter-departmental committee to examine a shared liability framework — addressing the question of whether banks that allowed transfers to fraudulent accounts bear any responsibility toward victims
- Victim compensation framework — the Court directed examination of a structured mechanism for compensating victims, including those who were defrauded through impersonation of court officials using forged court documents and fake court seals
- Public awareness campaigns — courts, law enforcement, and government agencies to actively communicate that no government agency conducts digital arrests, and no legitimate official will ask you to stay on a video call without disconnecting
There is no such thing as a "digital arrest" in Indian law. No government agency — CBI, customs, narcotics, income tax, police — has the power to arrest you over a phone call or video call. No legitimate official will ask you to stay on video and not contact your family. If you receive such a call: disconnect immediately. Call your family. Call the police at 1930 (National Cybercrime Helpline).
How the Scam Works — The Typical Pattern
- You receive a call from a number that appears official or displays as a known agency
- The caller alleges a serious crime — drug parcel, money laundering — connected to your name, Aadhaar, or phone number
- They connect you to a fake "superior officer" via video call, who appears in uniform and may display forged court documents or fake arrest warrants
- They convince you that you will be arrested unless you cooperate — and cooperation means staying on call and paying "bail" or "clearance" money into accounts they specify
- Victims transfer money through UPI, bank transfer, or cryptocurrency, believing they are securing their freedom
- By the time the victim realises the fraud, the money is gone and the fraudsters are unreachable
If You or Someone You Know Has Been Targeted
Call 1930 immediately — the National Cybercrime Helpline. Report the fraud. The sooner you report, the higher the chance of freezing the receiving account before the money is withdrawn.
File a complaint at cybercrime.gov.in — the national cybercrime reporting portal. Provide all call records, screenshots, account details given by the fraudsters, and transaction records.
Contact your bank immediately and request a reversal or freeze of the transferred amount. Ask for the complaint reference number. The Supreme Court's directions to RBI mean banks are now under greater pressure to have rapid response protocols for such situations.
File an FIR at the nearest police station under Sections 318 (cheating) and 319 (cheating by impersonation) of the BNS, and under the relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act — particularly Section 66D (impersonation using computer).
Share information with elderly relatives — the primary targets of digital arrest scams are senior citizens who are less familiar with how government agencies function and more likely to believe an authoritative-sounding caller.