India disconnects 20M phone numbers in ‘cyberslave’ crackdown

Growing reports of Indian citizens becoming enslaved in South East Asia to commit cybercrime and cryptocurrency fraud has forced the government to tighten security checks for SIM cards and disconnect over 20 million mobile connections.

More than 29,000 Indians are believed to be trapped in Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, and Vietnam, where they are forced to scam their fellow citizens. Lured under the guise of a well-paying job, their money and passports are confiscated on arrival.

These cyberslaves are given phones that will mask their location and present as an Indian mobile number. They’re told to call Indians and lure them into cryptocurrency scams, identity theft, pig butchering scams, and more. They’re threatened and beaten if they don’t comply.

The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) has reportedly received around 100,000 cybercrime complaints since January 2023. Of those cases, a whopping 45% originated in South East Asia.

The Union Ministry of Telecommunications said that it has identified several ways to mitigate the sheer number of overseas scam calls. It plans to block more than 20,000 mobile handsets and disconnect 21.7 million connections that have been fraudulently acquired or found to be associated with cybercrime, the Indian Express reports.

What’s more, tighter know-your-customer (KYC) checks will be implemented for SIM cards. All telecom providers must now provide weekly data in order to pinpoint fraudulent numbers, and police have been asked to take action against SIM card sales agents found to be supplying these cybercrime rings.

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These cyberslaves come from all across India, but according to the Business Standard, over 33% are from Punjab, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu. Over half are between the ages of 20 and 39 (17,115); men account for more than 72% of the missing persons (21,182).

Thailand appears to be the country attracting the vast majority of these cyberslaves — over 69% of reported cases (20,450) travelled to the country and never came back. Over 5,000 Indians are believed to be ensnared in Cambodia to commit cyber- and crypto-related crimes.

India’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT) began taking action against this growing threat in May, when it ordered telecom operators to block all incoming international calls that pretended to be an Indian mobile number. According to the Indian Express, 35% of incoming international calls are subsequently being blocked.

Meanwhile, a high-level task force is working on tightening checks at immigration to better identify potential cyberslaves before they leave India. More information is being gathered on those already ensnared, and India’s intelligence agencies and government departments are discussing further solutions.

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