Police Warn Of Rising AI Scams After 74-Year-Old Lands In ICU
Cybercrime is escalating rapidly in the erstwhile Karimnagar districts, with criminals using sophisticated tools such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) voice mimicry and malicious links to cause not only financial loss but also severe emotional and physical distress: Reports
KARIMNAGAR: Cybercrime is escalating rapidly in the erstwhile Karimnagar districts, with criminals using sophisticated tools such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) voice mimicry and malicious links to cause not only financial loss but also severe emotional and physical distress. Police officials have issued urgent warnings after a series of incidents in which victims were hospitalised due to the stress caused by AI-based scams, showing that the threat has now moved far beyond routine bank fraud.
In a shocking case in Huzurabad, 74-year-old Masadi Laxman Rao was admitted to the ICU with critically high blood pressure after falling victim to an AI-powered voice scam. Fraudsters, posing as police, called him claiming his son in America had been arrested. They used AI to perfectly clone his son’s voice and demanded ₹9 lakh for his release. Although Laxman did not pay, the mental shock and fear were so severe that he collapsed at the police station while filing a complaint, highlighting the devastating psychological toll of such crimes.
In another incident in Huzurabad, Nusrat Fathima, the mother of an intermediate student, received a similar ransom call. Instead of panicking, she immediately rushed to her daughter’s college, confirmed she was safe, and avoided a loss of ₹30,000. Police appreciated her prompt action when she reported the incident and filed a complaint.
Cybercriminals are also deploying new methods. In Karimnagar city, advocate Paramesh Goud was targeted by a scammer posing as a courier agent, who asked him to click a link to resolve an address issue. The moment he opened the link, his mobile phone and WhatsApp were compromised, and the scammers used his hacked account to solicit money from his contacts, causing losses of up to ₹2 lakh.
In Cherlabutkur village, several victims lost money after receiving fake messages about pending traffic fines. They were tricked into downloading malicious APK files (unverified apps) that stole their bank credentials. One victim lost ₹70,000, demonstrating how scammers exploit fear of penalties to deploy spyware.
Despite the surge in cybercrime, police have succeeded in recovering significant amounts. Karimnagar Police Commissioner Gouse Alam said a recent Special Lok Adalat received tremendous response, resolving 1,280 cases. Importantly, in 57 cybercrime cases, the court ordered the refund of ₹51.39 lakh frozen in various bank accounts back to the victims.
The Commissioner urged the public to exercise extreme caution. If someone receives a call claiming that a family member is in trouble, they should disconnect immediately and call the person back on a known number. People must never click on suspicious links or download unverified apps sent via SMS or social media. Police and other law-enforcement agencies never demand money over the phone for bail or to avoid a “digital arrest.” Suspected incidents must be reported immediately to the National Cybercrime Helpline (1930) or at cybercrime.gov.in.