International fake call centre busted in Hyderabad, nine held for targeting Australians

Hyderabad: Cyberabad Police arrested nine members of a fake call centre in Madhapur that defrauded Australian citizens using remote access scams. Acting on intelligence, the Cyber Crime Police teamed up with the Balanagar Special Operations Team (SOT) to carry out the raid.

Operating under the name “Ridge IT Solutions,” the gang used fake pop-up alerts to mislead Australians into believing their systems were compromised. The victims, fearing security breaches, contacted a spoofed helpline that connected them to Hyderabad-based tele-callers via X-Lite software.

Fake call centre used tech support scams to drain Australian bank accounts

After initiating the call, the tele-callers quickly accessed the victims’ devices using AnyDesk. They used that access to log in to online banking portals and transfer funds to Australian accounts controlled by Indian nationals. The money, in turn, flowed back to India through hawala channels, cryptocurrency, and hidden financial networks.

Investigators pegged the fraud at ₹8–10 crore over the last two years.

The accused tele-callers came from Hyderabad, Odisha, and West Bengal. Meanwhile, the operation’s masterminds identified as Praveen and Prakash remain at large. Police revealed that the duo managed the centre from Hyderabad and recruited staff from Kolkata to run the scheme.

During the raid, officers recovered 12 HP desktop computers, 21 mobile phones, several routers, 45 sets of Australian bank account credentials, company stamps, and a Thar SUV.

Following the arrests, Cyberabad Police issued a warning to NRI students and families. They advised against sharing or renting international bank account details, as such credentials often enable cross-border cyber fraud and laundering.

To report cybercrimes, citizens can call 1930 or message 9490617444 on WhatsApp. Police assured complete confidentiality for informants.