More than 4,000 people allegedly paid Rs 40,000 after being promised government-linked jobs paying Rs 15,000 a month.
The accused allegedly operated from a rented premises in Tikhampur using organisations whose names were made to resemble government bodies, and victims were reportedly given fake appointment letters.
Police have registered a case against 13 named and five unidentified people, while experts warn that increasingly convincing recruitment scams are making it harder for job seekers to distinguish genuine opportunities from fraud.
Over 4,000 Duped In Fake Govt Job Scam In UP's Ballia, 13 Named In FIR
More than 4,000 people in Uttar Pradesh's Ballia allegedly paid Rs 40,000 each after being promised government-linked jobs, with 13 named and five unidentified people booked in the case
Summary
More than 4,000 people here allegedly fell for a job recruitment scam that promised work at organisations that were deceptively named to sound like government bodies, police said on Thursday.
Police lodged a case against 13 named and five unidentified people on Wednesday based on the complaint of a villager who claimed people were promised a monthly salary of Rs 15,000, the report as quoted by PTI said.
According to the report, the alleged operation was run from a rented premises in Tikhampur, where the accused claimed to operate organisations including the Laghu Udyog Vikas Parishad, Ujjwala Shiksha Mission and Audyogik Prashikshan Mahila Vikas Yojana.
How Did Fake Govt Job Scam Happen?
The accused claimed to be running Laghu Udyog Vikas Parishad, Ujjwala Shiksha Mission and Audyogik Prashikshan Mahila Vikas Yojana from a rented place in Tikhampur in Ballia district to carry out the fraud.
According to a complaint filed by Rajesh Kumar Kannaujiya of Parsupur village, the accused told people that the government planned to appoint two persons in every village and asked them to deposit Rs 40,000 as security. They were promised a monthly salary of Rs 15,000, as per PTI.
13 Named In FIR As Police Probe Fraud
More than 4,000 people from the area allegedly made the security deposit and were given fake appointment letters. They were also made to work before the accused shut their office and fled, the complaint said. A case was registered against 13 named and five unidentified accused under relevant sections of the BNS. Station House Officer Vansh Bahadur Singh said police were investigating the matter.
The Ballia case comes amid growing concerns over increasingly sophisticated online job scams. Leyla Bilge, who leads global scam research at Gen Digital, says fraudsters can now create professional-looking company websites within minutes.
She said her team has begun referring to such schemes as “vibe scams”, warning that a polished online presence can no longer be treated as proof that a company is genuine, as per Financial Times.
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There are regional scam variants, she said, as quoted by Financial Times, “Japan’s ‘yami baito’ scams recruit young people into criminal work through vague, high-paying ‘side jobs’.” It’s always the same “underlying playbook, re-skinned for the moment”.
Indian government’s Department of Telecommunications also issued warning regarding job scams.
“Don't immediately trust every Job Offer you receive online. Don't rush into making payments after falling for fake Offer Letters that come from unknown numbers; it could be a Scam. Report such suspicious numbers on the Sanchar Saathi portal,” it said.
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