Bhopal: A businessman in Bhopal was put under “digital arrest” by the cyber criminals for the purpose of looting, was later saved by the Madhya Pradesh police, police offcial said on Sunday.

Vivek Oberoi, a resident of Arera Colony, received a call around 1 pm on Saturday from individuals pretending to be officials of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), according to an MP police cyber cell release.

The scammers then connected Oberoi to individuals claiming to be officials from the CBI and Mumbai crime branch, the release said.

The scammers trapped Oberoi by alleging that fake bank accounts were opened using his Aadhaar, which they claimed was also used to purchase SIM cards for unsolicited marketing, the release said.

“Digital arrest” is a type of online fraud where scammers impersonate law enforcement or government officials to convince victims that they are under arrest.

The cyber crooks told Oberoi to download the Skype video app and asked him to stay in a room. During that time, the businessman alerted the MP cyber police and cops reached his home amid his ‘digital arrest’.

When police demanded ID verification of the fake law-enforcement officials, the fraudsters disconnected the video call, the release said.

While the conmen had got the businessman’s bank details during his “digital arrest”, he didn’t transfer any money, the release added.

(with agency inputs)