Trending video of the day: Influencer Ankush Bahuguna shares his “Digital Arrest” ordeal

Ankush Bahuguna, in the video, shared about the 40 hours of questioning by scammers through non-stop video calls, becoming a victim of these scams.

Digital scams have been on the rise in India. Scammers pose as police officials or other executives and defraud people by making them engage in fraudulent activities. These scams include identity theft, phishing, and more complex schemes such as digital extortion and financial fraud. Recently, popular influencer Ankush Bahuguna became a victim of digital arrest. He shared his ordeal through a video, which has now been widely spread on the internet.

Influencer Ankush Bahuguna gets defrauded in a digital scam.

Recently, Ankush Bahuguna fell prey to digital fraud and was held hostage for nearly 40 hours. Sharing details of the same through a video on Instagram, he opened up on the scammers who allegedly “hypnotised” him into making a transaction and isolated him from his friends and family for 40 hours through a non-stop video call. He mentioned about losing money and even mental health to the scam. It began with an automated call from an international number claiming that a package scheduled to be delivered to him was cancelled, further luring him to press “zero” for support. Bahuguna said he was intrigued and pressed “zero” and called it “the biggest mistake of his life.” The call was then connected to someone claiming to be a customer support representative, who told him that a package with illegal substances linked to his name was sent to China. The representative then informed Bahuguna that an arrest warrant had already been issued against him.

“Was not allowed to pick up calls.”

He said in the video, “I was not allowed to pick up calls. I was not allowed to message people or reply to their messages, let anybody in the house. They told me that if I tried to reach out to anyone, they would arrest me and harm the people I contacted. They took my bank details. They gathered so much personal information about my life.” He was asked to make suspicious transactions. Throughout the ordeal he was repeatedly warned that if he didn’t comply, his career would be destroyed, his family will be at risk and that he would face severe consequences. He said, “They told me, ‘Your parents are in danger,’ and ‘If you try to contact anyone, we’ll arrest you.’”

Watch the viral video here:

Ankush Bahuguna was pressured to send screenshots of every action he took and had to even pretend everything was fine when his friends began reaching out. When his friends reached his home to check on him, he was forced to assure them that he was doing well and was only busy. The call ended when Bahuguna received a message from a friend warning him about the recent rise in digital scams.