Beware of fraudulent govt emails: Home ministry issues public warning

Ministry of Home Affairs' Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) issues a public notice advising citizens to verify e-notices they receive via email

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The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), operating under the Ministry of Home Affairs, has released a public notice urging citizens to authenticate e-notices received via email. The advisory cautions against falling prey to fraudulent emails disguised as official government notices.

The I4C's public advertisement warns citizens about fraudulent emails designed to deceive and defraud unsuspecting individuals. It suggests several counter-measures for handling such emails, including verifying the authenticity of the email's origin.

The advice issued by I4C includes:

• Check if the email address ends with "gov.in."
• Search the internet for information about the officials mentioned in the email
• Contact the mentioned department directly to verify the email

Last year, the I4C issued a similar advisory warning users about counterfeit emails impersonating the chief executive officer, with subject lines such as "urgent notification" and "court notification."

In a statement, the I4C had said, "These misleading emails are targeted at various government offices and individuals, falsely accusing them of cyber crimes and urging them to respond."

Earlier in the month, the Ministry of Finance issued a public advisory cautioning email users about fraudulent emails that falsely employ the names, signatures, stamps, and logos of various authorities, including Delhi Police Cyber Crime and Economic Offence, Central Economic Intelligence Bureau, the Intelligence Bureau, and Cyber Cell of Delhi. The advisory highlights that these deceptive emails frequently include attachments falsely accusing recipients of serious crimes like child pornography, paedophilia, cyber pornography, and distributing sexually explicit material.

"Receivers of any such email should be aware of this fraudulent attempt. It is informed to the general public that any such emails with the attachment should not be responded to, and such cases may be reported to the nearest police station or cyber police station," it said.