Before paying anyone
Stop if the person creates urgency, secrecy, guaranteed returns, a refund trick, or asks you to pay to release money.
Prevention Hub
Prevent scams before they reach your money, phone, family, or identity.
Use quick checks and scam-wise prevention notes before you pay, install, share documents, or trust a high-pressure message.
Before you act
- No login, no uploads, and no OTP or password asked here.
- Do not install apps or share screen access during a threat call.
- Use official reporting/support options only when needed.
Quick safety checks
Pause before the risky step.
Pick the situation closest to what is happening. Each check is short enough to use while a message or call is still fresh.
Before installing an app
Do not install APKs, remote support tools, configuration profiles, or unknown finance apps sent by chat or call.
Before sharing Aadhaar/KYC
Verify the official source first. Do not share Aadhaar OTP, PAN scans, selfies, or KYC videos through chat links.
Before trusting police/courier/court calls
No agency arrests you over a video call. Do not stay isolated, transfer money, or follow screen-share instructions.
Before helping a friend online
Call the person on a known number before sending money, codes, gift cards, or documents requested from a social account.
Before joining investment groups
Be careful with WhatsApp or Telegram groups showing fake profits, celebrity videos, insider tips, or withdrawal fees.
Scam-wise cards
Match the scam, then open the right prevention note.
These cards are powered by the local taxonomy metadata. The prevention instructions remain editable in the HTML sections below.
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Static checklists
Prevention notes you can use before damage happens.
No personal details are requested. These are simple checks for common Indian scam patterns.
Digital arrest
- End calls claiming police, CBI, customs, courier, court, or drugs unless you can independently verify the office.
- Do not join video calls, stay isolated, or keep your camera on because someone says a case is secret.
- Do not transfer money for verification, bail, clearance, courier release, or account safety.
- If the threat is active, open Digital Arrest Rescue.
UPI / bank fraud
- Reject collect requests, refund links, payment reversal tricks, QR code pressure, and requests to share UPI PIN.
- Use bank apps or official support channels directly instead of numbers found through search ads or chat forwards.
- Never pay a recovery agent or anyone promising guaranteed refund or freeze.
- If money has left your account, open UPI / Bank Fraud Rescue.
Screen share / device takeover
- Do not install APK files, remote access apps, loan apps, or iPhone configuration profiles sent by strangers.
- Do not share screen while opening banking, UPI, email, SMS, photos, or password manager apps.
- Remove suspicious apps only after disconnecting from the caller and preserving basic evidence safely.
- If remote access may be active, open Screen-Share Rescue.
Account hacked
- Do not share login codes, backup codes, WhatsApp verification codes, or password reset links.
- Turn on two-step verification for email, WhatsApp, social accounts, and payment apps before trouble starts.
- Watch for SIM stopped, eSIM activation, call forwarding, or unknown recovery email changes.
- If access has changed, open Account Hacked Rescue.
Aadhaar / KYC leak
- Do not share Aadhaar OTP, PAN scans, selfies, live videos, or bank statements through chat links.
- Verify KYC requests by opening the official app or website yourself, not through a message link.
- Be careful with loan apps requesting contacts, gallery access, selfie videos, and identity documents.
- If documents were shared, start from Rescue triage.
Fake profile / impersonation
- Verify friends, recruiters, investors, sellers, and matrimonial contacts through a second trusted channel.
- Do not send money because a profile claims an emergency, profit opportunity, courier problem, or private settlement.
- Save profile links, usernames, screenshots, and chat dates before reporting the profile.
- If a profile is misusing your identity, open Fake Profile Rescue.
Sextortion
- Do not pay, negotiate, send more images, or accept a video call from an unknown contact.
- Lock privacy settings and save screenshots of threats, numbers, usernames, and payment demands.
- If a child or minor is involved, involve a trusted adult and use official reporting support quickly.
- If threats have started, open Sextortion Rescue.
Investment / trading scams
- Avoid groups promising fixed returns, insider tips, celebrity-backed apps, or guaranteed crypto profits.
- Do not trust screenshots of profits, fake dashboards, or withdrawal fees demanded before releasing your own money.
- Search official registration and complaint history before funding any platform or adviser.
- If money has already moved, start from Rescue triage.
Family protection
Set the Rules Before the Call Comes
Most scams do not break technology. They break calm.
A scammer creates panic, then pushes one person to act alone. Simple family rules, agreed before anything happens, make it easier to pause, verify, and act fast.
Official calls and senior safety
Fake police calls, digital arrest threats, KYC expiry warnings, blocked-account alerts, and bank pressure scripts often target senior citizens.
- No real officer arrests anyone over phone or video.
- Banks never ask for OTP, UPI PIN, password, or full card number.
- A scary call is a reason to slow down, not speed up.
- Choose one calm family member as the first call, and use a family code word for real money emergencies.
Teens, children, and online pressure
Fake profiles, romance traps, gaming links, payment links, and private-photo blackmail work by creating secrecy, shame, or fear.
- A stranger asking for private photos, video, secrecy, or payment is a warning sign.
- Blackmail threats become weaker when a trusted adult knows.
- Free reward or game login links can steal accounts.
- No blame. Stop the damage and help the targeted person act.
WhatsApp, UPI, and bank safety
Family groups can stop scams early when people check links calmly and explain the trick instead of forwarding fear.
- Do not forward lottery, refund, KYC, investment, or urgent payment links.
- UPI PIN is only for sending money, never for receiving.
- No genuine refund, prize, or bank support request needs a PIN.
- Read bank SMS and payment screens before confirming any payment.
Screen-share, apps, and shared accounts
Remote access apps, APK links, and risky permissions can let strangers watch, control, or weaken a phone before the family notices.
- Never share your screen because a caller tells you to.
- Do not install APK files or apps sent by WhatsApp, SMS, or unknown links.
- Be careful if an app asks for SMS, contacts, accessibility, or screen access.
- Turn on app lock for banking, UPI, email, and WhatsApp, and keep recovery details updated.
First 5 Minutes
- Stop the payment, call, chat, or video.
- Stop screen-sharing or remote access immediately.
- Call the trusted family member.
- If money is involved, call 1930 quickly.
- Report at cybercrime.gov.in.
- Save messages, numbers, screenshots, and transaction details safely.
Weekly Family Safety Check
- Ask if anyone received a strange call, link, or message.
- Check that no unknown app was installed.
- Confirm UPI and banking apps still have app lock.
- Review one family rule out loud.
- Make sure 1930 is saved on every phone.
- Remind children and elders: reporting early is better than hiding.
Free guidance for Indian families. No sign-up. No OTP, PIN, password, or document upload.
This is educational guidance only, not legal advice. Scam Rescue India is independent and not affiliated with any government body. We never ask for OTP, UPI PIN, passwords, Aadhaar, PAN, card details, or bank details. If money is lost or fraud is active, call 1930 quickly and report at cybercrime.gov.in.
Related alerts
Check current scam alerts before you act.
New scam patterns change quickly. Review recent alerts for active fraud tactics, risky messages, and warning signs.
Official help links
Official reporting and support options.
These are factual official options, not affiliation or endorsement.
Call 1930
For financial cyber fraud, early reporting through the national helpline may help limit further loss.
cybercrime.gov.in
Use the national cybercrime portal for official complaint filing and reporting support.
FAQ
Common prevention questions.
Is this an official government website?
No. Scam Rescue India is independent guidance. Official reporting options include 1930 for financial cyber fraud and cybercrime.gov.in.
Should I share OTP, UPI PIN, password, or screen access during prevention checks?
No. This page does not ask for OTP, UPI PIN, passwords, full bank details, uploads, or screen access.
What if I have already lost money or account access?
Open the Rescue section first. Prevention checklists are for avoiding damage, while Rescue paths are for active or completed incidents.