A sophisticated scam operation based in Noida, India, has been uncovered, revealing a massive fraud that has siphoned $1.4 million from unsuspecting victims since November 2021. The call centre, run by Pankaj Dhingra and Awadhesh Kumar, specialises in tech support scams that prey on vulnerable individuals through deceptive online advertisements.
The investigation began when a researcher who goes by the X handle @NanoBaiter encountered a fraudulent Google advertisement offering printer support. These seemingly legitimate websites tricked users into believing their devices needed urgent repairs.
Victims who engaged with the site were directed to a ‘Support Chat’ feature, which collected their personal details, including their phone numbers.
Shortly after submitting their information, victims would receive a call from a so-called ‘technician’ who instructed them to install Zoho Assist, a remote desktop software. This allowed scammers to take control of the victim’s computer, where they would fabricate technical issues by displaying non-existing errors and warnings.
The end goal was to pressure victims into purchasing unnecessary and overpriced support plans.
The scammers didn’t anticipate that the cybersecurity researcher had set up a virtual machine, allowing him to reverse the connection and gain access to the scammer’s system. Through this access, he could view their desktops, monitor their operations, and even tap into their CCTV surveillance feeds.
The compromised machine turned out to be Pankaj Dingra’s laptop. This provided access to a trove of critical data, including salary slips, identity documents, and recordings of fraudulent transactions.
Additionally, the scammers had been managing their illicit earnings through AWS servers but had made a crucial mistake — they remained logged in with full access permissions.
Over weeks of monitoring, the researcher observed the scammer logging into PayPal accounts to generate fraudulent invoices. A deep dive into the financial records revealed that over 9,000 individuals had fallen victim to the scheme, collectively losing more than $1.4 million.
The final phase of the takedown involved systematically crippling the scammers’ infrastructure. Their Google AdSense account was reported, cutting off their reach to a few victims. Researchers flagged scammers’ websites to JivoChat, disabling customer interactions, and their Zoho Assist account was reported for misuse. All evidence was compiled and shared with law enforcement, including the FBI.
The investigator has all the information and has asked the Uttar Pradesh police to contact him for details.
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