No. It is always a scam. There is no “digital arrest” in Indian law, and no police force, CBI, customs, NCB or RBI officer questions you or holds you on a phone or video call, or asks for money to close a “case”. Hang up, tell someone in your family, and call 1930 or report on cybercrime.gov.in.
"Digital arrest" calls from fake police, CBI or customs
A caller claiming to be from the police, CBI, ED, an anti-terrorism squad, TRAI or customs says your Aadhaar, phone number or a parcel in your name is linked to money laundering, drugs or a terror investigation. They move you to a video call, show fake ID cards and a fake police station backdrop, and keep you on the line - now for days or weeks - while you transfer money to a 'safe account' to avoid arrest.
⚙️ How it works
Fear and isolation. You are told you are under 'digital arrest' and must not hang up or tell anyone. There is no such thing as a digital arrest under Indian law. The pretext has been escalating: alongside the parcel and Aadhaar stories, callers now say your identity has come up in an investigation into a terror attack and present themselves as Anti-Terrorist Squad officers, because a national-security accusation makes arguing feel dangerous rather than merely expensive. The hold has also stretched. What used to be one frightening afternoon now runs for weeks of daily calls, with transfers extracted again and again over that whole period - one 89-year-old in Lucknow was kept under continuous control for 22 days and lost about Rs 16.09 lakh. Very old people living alone are the preferred target, because the isolation the scam depends on is easy to maintain. A newer opening comes from a 'Data Protection Department': in October 2026 a 65-year-old Mumbai advocate was told 20 complaints had been filed against him, then got a WhatsApp video call from a fake sub-inspector who said a bank account opened with his Aadhaar had received Rs 20 crore used by a banned organisation. Over the next days the 'officer' asked about his family's jobs, daily routines, when they come home and how much gold they own, then told him to move his cash and assets 'to the RBI' for checking. He sent Rs 10.20 lakh by RTGS before his daughter told him arrests do not happen this way. You can also be made to borrow. In a 2024 case, a 32-year-old Bengaluru woman said fraudsters posing as Mumbai police and an RBI official made her apply for an instant personal loan of Rs 50 lakh during the calls; it arrived within 15 minutes and they had her add three beneficiaries and send it to them. The loan stayed unpaid, and the bank began criminal proceedings after an instalment payment instruction for Rs 52.41 lakh bounced. On 16 October 2026 the Karnataka High Court refused to quash them, noting that OTPs went to
🚩 Red flags
A police, court, 'Data Protection Department' or other agency contacting you over WhatsApp or a video call
Being told to stay on the call and not speak to family, a lawyer or your bank
'Police' from another city or state's crime branch call about a case you have never heard of
The caller says your name or Aadhaar has surfaced in a terrorism, money-laundering or national-security investigation
Questions about your family's routines, when they are out, or how much gold and cash you keep
Any demand to transfer money to a 'safe', 'RBI' or 'verification' account, to apply for an instant loan during the call, or calls that go on day after day
✅ What to do
Hang up. No agency arrests anyone over a video call or asks for money to avoid arrest.
Do not transfer anything, and never apply for a loan on a caller's instructions. Call a family member and your bank on their official numbers.
Paying once never ends it - the callers come back for more. Stop, hang up and call 1930.
Never tell a caller what gold or cash is kept at home or when family members are out.
Tell one person - family, a neighbour, anyone - before you do anything the caller asked. Breaking the isolation is what ends this scam.
Report the number on cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930 (the national cyber-fraud helpline).
If money already left your account, call 1930 immediately - the first hour matters most.
If an elderly relative lives alone, tell them about this one by name; they are who the callers look for, and a long call they will not explain is the sign.
The Ministry of Home Affairs warned in May 2024 that callers pose as State police, CBI, the Narcotics department, RBI, the Enforcement Directorate and other agencies. They say you sent, or are about to receive, a parcel with drugs, fake passports or other contraband — or that someone close to you is in their custody — and demand money to “settle” the case. Some victims are kept on a Skype or other video call until they pay, in front of a set made to look like a police station, by people in uniform. The Ministry calls it an organised crime run by cross-border syndicates. In his October 2024 Mann Ki Baat the Prime Minister said: there is no system like digital arrest in the law, and no investigating agency inquires by phone or video call.
🚩 Red flags
A caller says a parcel in your name holds drugs, passports or other contraband
They say a family member is in their custody or involved in a crime
You are asked to stay on a video call and not to hang up or tell anyone
Uniforms, ID cards or a “police station” behind the caller — these are staged
Any demand for money to close the “case” or to “verify” your account
✅ What to do
Stop: stay calm, do not give any personal details, and take a screenshot or recording if you can.
Think: no government agency threatens you like this on the phone or asks for money on a video call.
Take action: call 1930, report on cybercrime.gov.in, tell your family and the police, and keep the evidence.
No money lost? Report the number on Chakshu (Sanchar Saathi, Department of Telecommunications) within 30 days.
In a March 2025 reply in the Rajya Sabha, the Ministry of Home Affairs said I4C had blocked more than 3,962 Skype IDs and 83,668 WhatsApp accounts used for digital arrest, and that telecom operators have been directed to block incoming international spoofed calls that display Indian mobile numbers. So an Indian-looking number or a WhatsApp profile with a police logo proves nothing. The 1930 helpline exists to report financial fraud quickly, so that the money can be stopped before it is moved on.
Already paid, shared a code or your screen? Call your bank on the number printed on your card and block the card.
Then call 1930, India’s national cyber-fraud helpline, and report it on
cybercrime.gov.in the same day.
Questions people ask about this message
Is digital arrest real?
No. In the October 2024 Mann Ki Baat the Prime Minister said there is no system like digital arrest in the law and called it a fraud. A real arrest or inquiry is never done over a phone or video call.
Can the police or CBI call me on WhatsApp video?
Not to question you, hold you or ask for money. The Government says no investigating agency inquires by phone or video call and no government agency demands money on a video call. A caller in uniform on WhatsApp or Skype is the scam itself.
They say a parcel in my name had drugs. What should I do?
Hang up. This parcel story is the most common opening named by the Ministry of Home Affairs. Do not pay or share any details. Tell a family member and report the call on cybercrime.gov.in or 1930.
I already paid. What now?
Call 1930 at once, then your bank on the number printed on your card, and file the complaint on cybercrime.gov.in. Keep the call log, screenshots and transaction IDs. Paying once does not end it - the callers come back for more, so stop all contact.
Where do I report a suspicious call if I have not lost money?
On Chakshu, part of the Department of Telecommunications' Sanchar Saathi portal, within 30 days. If money is lost, use 1930 or cybercrime.gov.in instead.
Can Aegix stop these calls?
No app can make a phone call safe. Aegix lists the scams spreading in India in its Scam Radar, so you and your parents know this one before it arrives, and its Scam Checker reads any message or link you paste in. The free web scam checker works in your browser too.
Let the phone warn you next time
Aegix is an Android security app from CryoSim, free to install, no account. Its Scam Radar lists the scams spreading in India,
filtered to your state; Scam Checker reads any message or link you paste in; and scam-SMS warnings (Aegix Premium, first month
free for new users) flag a scam-looking SMS as it arrives. Aegix flags the message; it does not delete it.
