It all started when I received a call from someone claiming that he was from my mobile service provider and wanted me to shutdown my phone for 2 hours for 3G update to take place. As I was rushing for a meeting, I did not question and shutdown my cell phone.

After about 45 minutes I felt suspicious as the caller had not given me his name or designation etc. I turned on my cell phone and found several calls from my family members. There were also a few calls from the same number that had called me earlier.

I called my parents and was shocked to see that they sounded highly scared and perturbed. They asked me repeatedly if I was safe. It took me time to convince them that I was Okay.

They had received a call from someone claiming that they held me with them and asked for ransom money to let me free. The call looked very realistic and my parents even heard \’my voice\’ crying out loud asking for help. My father was at the bank waiting for their next call to transfer the money when I told him that I was safe, not pay money to anyone and asked him to lodge a police report. A narrow escape!

Right after that I received another call from the guy asking me to shutdown my cell phone for another 1 hour which I refused to do and hung up. They kept calling my cell phone until probably their battery ran out.

I myself lodged the police report and was informed by the officer that quite a many such reports had been filed with the department. In MOST reported cases the victims had already transferred the money, which was impossible to get back.

Please be careful as this could happen to anyone. The thugs are real professionals and very convincing during the calls.

If you are asked to shut down your cell phone for updates by the service provider, ASK AROUND.

Be Safe and Stay Alert!

Please pass around to your family and friends.