CISF men being duped by conmen posing as one of their own

new delhi: The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has this year received over 50 complaints from people, alleging that they were duped by conmen posing as CISF personnel, with officials adding that some of the victims included their own men.

According to data available with the CISF, accessed by Millennium Post, the paramilitary force had received 53 such complaints till August 18. The data showed that in January, February, March and April, they had received relatively low complaints (four, two, seven and two respectively) but the numbers increased from May.

In May, the CISF received eight emails whereas in June there were 12 complaints which increased to 15 in July. In these emails, people who became victims of such frauds or who were duped had written to the CISF informing them about the cheating.

CISF PRO Anil Pandey told Millennium Post that in some cases their own personnel had fallen victim to these fraudsters. "Sometimes these fraudsters posing themselves as CISF personnel post that they have got transferred to other battalions and they are selling their household articles at cheap rates. Our personnel sometimes become victims so we have created awareness internally among the force not to get trapped by any such claims especially those in which advance payment is asked through a link. We regularly make people aware to keep themselves safe from such frauds," he said.

In a series of tweets, the CISF recently said, "CISF wishes to inform that a notable increase has been noticed in on-line selling using fraudulent methods by unscrupulous elements. These sellers have been found posing as CISF force personnel by displaying fake IDs in order to extract payment from members of the public. Members of the public are hereby advised to be careful while entering into any such deal/transactions as it may be a fraudster trying to cheat you. In case of doubt, please report the matter to the

Local Police."

One CISF official said that in some cases, personnel had also reported their identity cards being misused. One such case was reported from Mumbai. These criminals used leaked soft copies of Aadhaar and ID cards of CISF and Army personnel and then posted these identity cards and fake photographs of motorcycles or articles on social media platforms or online shopping websites meant for used products. Some people got attracted to these products advertised at cheap prices.

"These fraudsters ask for money online and then flee with the money," the official said. According to another official, they have also written to online shopping websites and Delhi Police about such crimes on the rise.