Hyderabad: Cyber Crime police of Hyderabad have identified and taken down 184 social media profiles involved in promoting illegal online betting, gambling and fake investment schemes in April.Police said the profiles they have noticed on facebook and Instagram were linked to 801 paid advertisements of gambling, betting and investment schemes targeting users in India. “The ads promise easy money, bonuses, referral commissions and high investment returns to attract vulnerable users,” an official note issued by the Cyber Crime wing stated. Police also found that the profiles were sharing promotional content, referral links, IPL predictions and at times even deepfake videos of well-known personalities to lure the public.Police have reported all the 184 profiles to the concerned social media platforms and got them removed as a preventive measure to stop the spread of unlawful and misleading content. Based on the violations detected, six FIRs were also registered in April.During the cyber patrolling over the past few months, the cyber crime unit has so far identified and taken down 427 social media profiles and 1,903 paid promotional advertisements linked to online gaming, illegal betting and fake investment websites targeting Indian users.“Further investigation is underway to identify the individuals behind the profiles and the financial channels linked to them,” police said. The cyber crime unit also issued a public advisory warning that online betting and gambling are prohibited in Telangana and cautioned the public against fake high-return investment schemes, referral links and deepfake promotional videos.
