Beware of fake E-challans: Verify yours today!

The Navi Mumbai Police in Maharashtra has been hosting live sessions on their official social media platforms and appealing to the common people to join the free sessions to timely identify a cyber fraud. The Navi Mumbai Police has launched a cyber awareness campaign to educate people about changing trends of cyber frauds and one such awareness campaign is the traffic e-challan fraud.

Through their e-challan awareness campaign, the Navi Mumbai Police are warning residents about receiving fake traffic e-challans, an online ticket for traffic violations, and putting in place a dedicated helpline number for Navi Mumbai residents.

"Fraudsters are sending fake e-challan messages to trick people into making payments. For any assistance, contact our helpline: 8828112112," an awareness social media post reads.

To help people verify the authenticity of these e-challans, the police launched an awareness campaign on how one can protect from falling victim to cyber fraud.

To spread awareness, the Navi Mumbai Police is regularly organising workshops on their social media platforms as they aim to educate people about the changing trends of cyber fraud and how to recognise fraudulent communications by cybercriminals.

"Some of these messages contain incorrect details or look unprofessional. The police advise people to check the validity of any e-challan before making payments to entertaining messages or calls for money collections against any traffic e-challan," an official said.

Cyber experts say that cyber fraudsters are quick to change patterns of scamming people online. One such scam is the fake traffic e-challan cyber fraud where a fraudster sends a message along with a link, upon clicking on the link, the page directs a person to a payment gateway which is a fake one and it leads to a person losing his money. Similar frauds are done even through calls where the fraudsters trick a person into sharing an OTP.

Ritesh Bhatia, a leading Mumbai-based cyber expert told mid-day, "Fraudsters in such cases don't hack into a person's account. Instead, they manipulate the individual using various deceptive tactics. Often, they create a sense of urgency, pressuring the person to share their OTP, leading to an immediate transaction. For example, they may request a small payment but use the person's details to carry out a much larger transaction."

He said, to protect yourself from e-challan fraud, the best approach is to verify thoroughly. You can always consult a traffic officer with a machine who can physically check and confirm the challan. Most importantly, don't panic if you receive a message or call regarding an e-challan. Authorities provide ample time to settle the challan, so there's no need to respond immediately to any call or message until you've verified it through an official source, such as the website or app."

Bhatia added, "These messages often induce panic by claiming urgent traffic violations. Don't be misled by suspicious links or fake websites. Always verify details through the official Parivahan website (parivahan.gov.in). Pay attention to the domain ending in ".gov.in." If in doubt, reach out to local traffic authorities. Don't rush into making payments - verify with authorities before taking any action."

The Navi Mumbai Police, through their awareness campaigns, stress the importance of being vigilant and informed.

Some key points to understand how to verify an e-challan

Official Website: Always check the official Navi Mumbai Traffic Police website or the Maharashtra Government's traffic portal. Genuine e-challans will be listed there.

Contact Police: If you receive an e-challan that looks suspicious, call the helpline to confirm its authenticity.

Check Details: Look for the correct vehicle details and the violation description in the e-challan. If anything seems off, it may be fake.

Payment Channels: Only pay fines through official channels. Avoid third-party websites or unknown links.