Microsoft moves to stop Indian fake tech support scams - make sure you stay protected

• Indian police conducted raids at 19 locations to target scammers
• Six people were arrested, and numerous equipment seized
• The operation targeted elderly Japanese victims

Indian and Japanese law enforcement, with the help of Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit (DCU), have taken down a major financial fraud network and arrest six people suspected of running the entire operation.

India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) recently conducted raids at 19 locations across the country and dismantled a large network that includes tech support schemes.

The network mostly targeted older adults in Japan (aged 60 and above) and included two illegal call centers. Besides the arrests, both digital and physical infrastructure was seized, including computers, storage devices, digital video recorders, and phones.

Chakra V

The fightback started with the Japan Cybercrime Control Center (JC3), a Japanese nonprofit dedicated to combating cybercrime, which identified the cybercriminal operation impersonating Microsoft, flagging it to the tech giant.

The operation, known as Chakra V, was large and well-organized, the report notes - it revolved around fake pop-ups tricking people into thinking their computers were broken, and providing a phone number to “call Microsoft” and have the issues fixed.

However the calls were actually being made towards the scammers, who would trick the victims into installing remote desktop software, or malware, and use this to steal sensitive files and money.

The operation included pop-up creators, search-engine optimizers, lead generators, logistics and technology providers, payment processors, and talent providers.

Microsoft also said that the introduction of Gen AI made scaling the operation infinitely easier and thus - more dangerous.

“These actors used generative AI to scale their operations, including to identify potential victims, automate the creation of malicious pop–up windows, and perform language translations to target Japanese victims,” Microsoft explained.

“This activity highlights the increasingly sophisticated tactics employed by cybercriminals and underscores the importance of proactive global collaboration to protect victims.”

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