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Digital arrest: what a genuine authority never asks

A caller in uniform on a video call says a parcel in your name holds drugs, or your bank account is tied to money laundering. You must stay on the call, tell no one, and transfer money to "verify" your innocence. It is a scam — start to finish. There is no such thing as a "digital arrest" in Indian law.

Real police, CBI, ED and courts never…

…arrest you over a video or phone call

There is no "digital arrest" or "digital custody." No agency detains anyone through Skype, WhatsApp or a video call. An arrest happens in person, under law.

…demand money to "clear your name"

No genuine officer asks you to transfer money to a "safe account", pay a "fine" to avoid arrest, or move funds to "verify" them. Any payment demand is the scam.

…order you to stay on the call and isolate

"Do not cut the call. Do not tell anyone. Stay in the room." Isolation is the tactic — it stops you asking someone who would recognise the scam.

…run proceedings over WhatsApp or Skype

Uniforms, fake ID cards, a "court hearing" on video, official-looking letters over WhatsApp — all are props. Genuine legal process does not happen over a chat app.

…threaten instant arrest to force speed

Manufactured urgency — "a warrant will be issued in one hour" — exists to stop you thinking. Real matters move through written notice and due process.

…ask for OTPs, passwords or screen sharing

No authority needs your bank OTP, UPI PIN, passwords, or remote access to your phone or screen. Anyone asking is stealing.

If you get one of these calls

Cut the call. You owe an unknown caller nothing. Do not stay on out of fear.
Do not pay or share any code. No transfer, no OTP, no PIN, no screen sharing.
Tell someone. Break the isolation — call a family member or colleague. Scams collapse the moment a second person hears them.
Report it on cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930. If you have already paid, report immediately — speed decides whether the money can be frozen.

If money has already changed hands, follow what to do in the first 10 minutes.

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