Free demo · Information Security · Lesson 2 · Phase 1 · Scams

Phishing, vishing and the digital arrest scam

Most cyber fraud does not hack your computer; it hacks you. A message that creates fear or urgency, a link, an OTP, and the money is gone. Learn to see the pattern.

Phishing e-mail: four red flags

Inbox · Gmail
FromSBI Alerts <alerts@sbi-secure-update.com>Toyou@gmail.com
URGENT: your account will be blocked in 24 hours

Dear Customer,

Your KYC has expired. Update within 24 hours to avoid permanent suspension of your account.

Update KYC now

State Bank of India · Do not reply

“Digital arrest”: always a scam

11:07▲ 5G ▮
● LIVE VIDEO
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CBI · Mumbai Crime BranchCase no. 4471 · parcel with narcotics“Stay on camera. Do not tell anyone. Transfer funds for verification.”
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₹647 crlost to digital arrest scamsJan–Aug 2026 · I4C/MHA report to the Supreme Court
21,900+digital arrest complaintsJan–Aug 2026, India
US$25 mpaid after a deepfake video callArup, Hong Kong, Feb 2024: every colleague on the call was fake
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About this lesson

Phishing is a fraudulent e-mail or website that imitates a trusted organisation to steal logins, card details or one-time passwords. Smishing does the same by SMS or WhatsApp, and vishing by voice call. India's fastest-growing variant is the “digital arrest” scam: callers posing as police, CBI, customs or RBI officers keep the victim on a video call, claim a parcel or bank account is linked to a crime, and demand money for “verification”. The Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre reported more than 21,900 such complaints worth over ₹647 crore between January and August 2026; the Supreme Court has asked the CBI to investigate the largest cases. Deepfake video and voice clones add a new layer: in February 2024 a finance worker at the engineering firm Arup transferred about US$25 million after a video call in which every colleague was an AI fake. The full course covers UPI and QR scams, fake apps, job and investment frauds, and more real cases.

Key points

  • Four red flags of a phishing e-mail
  • How the digital arrest scam works and why it is always fake
  • Deepfake fraud: the Arup case and how to verify a caller