In short. Digital arrest is not a legal concept in India. Real arrests are physical, follow the BNSS, and require the person to be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours. No agency asks you to stay on a video call or move money to a 'safe' account. Disconnect, verify through an official number you find yourself, and report on 1930 and cybercrime.gov.in.
Digital arrest scams have taken some of the largest individual losses of any cyber fraud in India, often from retired people, doctors, professors and business owners who have savings and a strong respect for authority. This post explains how the call is staged, why every part of it is false, what the law actually requires for an arrest or a summons, and what to do during the call and after. How frozen money is released by the magistrate is explained in more detail in our post on online job and investment scams: complaint and recovery, so this post only touches on it.
If you are reading this because you are on such a call right now, or someone is telling you not to disconnect, stop reading and end the call. Then call a family member and, if money has gone, the 1930 helpline. Nothing bad will happen to you for hanging up on a fake officer.
- Legal status
- No such thing as digital arrest under the BNSS or any other law
- Report
- 1930 for money lost; cybercrime.gov.in; Chakshu on Sanchar Saathi for the call
- Main offences
- Sections 204, 308, 318(4), 319 and 336 BNS; section 66D IT Act
- Investigation
- Cyber police; Supreme Court directed a CBI probe in December 2025
- Real arrest
- Physical custody, grounds told, magistrate within 24 hours
- Time to act
- Report within hours for the best chance of a freeze
What is a 'digital arrest' scam?
It is extortion and cheating dressed up as a police investigation. The caller tells you that you are suspected in a serious crime, usually money laundering, drug trafficking or a terror-funding case, and that you are under 'digital arrest'. You are told to stay on a video call, not to speak to anyone, and to cooperate with the 'investigation'. At the end, you are asked to transfer your money to an account for 'verification' or to secure 'bail', with a promise that it will be returned once you are cleared.
The phrase 'digital arrest' was invented by the scammers. It does not exist in the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, the PMLA, the NDPS Act or any other law. Courts can hold some proceedings by video link, and summons can in some cases be served electronically, but no law allows anyone to be arrested, detained or interrogated over a WhatsApp or Skype call, and no agency has a procedure for taking your savings into its custody to check whether they are clean.
How does a digital arrest call usually go?
The opening varies. It may be an automated call saying a parcel in your name has been seized by customs with drugs, passports and fake cards inside. It may be a 'TRAI' or 'telecom department' call saying your mobile number will be blocked because it was used for illegal activity. It may be a 'bank' saying a credit card in your name has been misused, or a 'police station' in Mumbai or Lucknow saying your Aadhaar number has been found in a money laundering case. In each case you are told to speak to an officer, and the call is transferred.
The 'officer' moves the call to WhatsApp or Skype video. You see a person in uniform, sometimes in a room made up to look like a police station, with a flag and a logo in the background. You are shown a 'case file', an 'arrest warrant', a letter on the letterhead of the CBI, the ED or the RBI, or even an 'order' of the Supreme Court. Some scammers impersonate a named senior officer. Your name, Aadhaar number and address are read out to you, because these are easy to buy from leaked databases, and that makes the call feel real.
Then comes isolation. You are told the case is confidential under national security rules, that you must not tell your family, that your phone is being monitored, and that you must keep the camera on at all times. Some victims are kept on the call for hours or even days, told to sleep with the camera on and report every few hours. Finally comes the demand: transfer your bank balance, break your fixed deposits or sell shares and move the money to a 'secret supervision account' or 'RBI verification account'. You are promised a refund after the 'audit'. The money is gone within minutes of reaching the account.
What real agencies never do
Each of these is a sure sign of a scam. One of them is enough.
- Arrest or detain you over a call. An arrest means an officer physically taking you into custody, telling you the grounds, and producing you before a magistrate within 24 hours.
- Ask you to stay on video or keep your camera on. No investigation in India is conducted by keeping a suspect on a video call at home.
- Ask you to keep it secret from your family. The BNSS requires the police to inform a relative or friend of your choice when you are arrested. Secrecy is the scammer's protection, not yours.
- Ask you to transfer money for verification. Neither the RBI, the ED, the CBI nor the police holds 'safe accounts' or checks whether your savings are legal by taking them.
- Send arrest warrants or court orders on WhatsApp. Real warrants are executed by officers in person. Supreme Court orders are not issued in private investigations and can be checked on the court's own website.
- Demand payment by UPI, crypto or gift cards. Fines and deposits ordered by courts are paid into court or government accounts through proper channels, with a receipt and a case number.
What the law actually requires for an arrest or a summons
Knowing the real procedure is the best protection. These are the provisions that apply to the agencies scammers most often impersonate.
Section 35, BNSS
For offences punishable with up to seven years, the police must ordinarily issue a written notice of appearance instead of arresting. The notice names a place and a date for you to appear in person. Our post on police notices under section 35 BNSS explains what a real notice looks like.
Sections 47, 48 and 58, BNSS
A person arrested must be told the grounds of arrest and the right to bail (section 47), a relative or friend must be informed (section 48), and the person must be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours (section 58). None of this is possible over a video call.
Sections 19 and 50, PMLA
ED summonses under section 50 require you to appear in person and give a statement; they are written documents served on you. An arrest under section 19 requires the grounds of arrest to be given in writing, as the Supreme Court held in Pankaj Bansal v Union of India (2023).
CBI notices
The CBI also issues written notices for questioning and conducts searches with warrants or under the law, in person. It does not conduct investigations by video call or ask for funds to be transferred.
If you want to know what real rights you have when someone is actually arrested, our post on your rights on arrest in Delhi sets them out.
What should you do if you get such a call right now?
Disconnect. You do not need permission to end the call, and you will not be arrested for doing so. If the caller has told you that hanging up will lead to immediate arrest, that is part of the script. Then speak to someone you trust, in person or by phone: a family member, a friend, your neighbour. Isolation is what makes the scam work, and it usually collapses the moment a second person hears the story.
Do not install any app or share your screen on the caller's instructions. Some scammers ask victims to install remote access apps or 'secure' apps, which give them control of the phone and the banking apps on it. Do not give OTPs, PINs or card details. Do not go to the bank to break your fixed deposit; if you are already at the bank, tell the branch manager what is happening.
Report the call. The Department of Telecommunications' Chakshu facility on the Sanchar Saathi portal takes reports of suspected fraud calls and messages, which helps get numbers and WhatsApp accounts blocked. You can also report on cybercrime.gov.in even if you have not lost money. If the caller had your Aadhaar or personal details, note what they knew; it helps the police connect the call to a particular gang.
If you have already transferred money
Victims often realise only after the last transfer, when the callers stop answering. Act the same day, even if it feels pointless.
Call 1930 immediately
Give every transaction: date, time, amount, UTR or reference number and the receiving account or UPI ID. The helpline enters it into the system shared with banks, which allows the receiving bank to hold any money still in the account. Note the acknowledgement number.
Call your bank's fraud line
Ask your bank to raise the fraud report with the receiving banks and to give you a written list of the transactions. If you broke a fixed deposit or sold shares, keep the records of that too.
File on cybercrime.gov.in
If you called 1930, check that the complaint appears on the portal; if not, file it there. Add the phone numbers, the WhatsApp and Skype IDs, screenshots of the video call and copies of the fake documents.
Register an FIR
Go to the district cyber police station with a written complaint and the evidence. In Delhi, losses above ₹10 lakh reported on 1930 or the portal are converted into an e-Zero FIR, and you must visit the police station within three days to convert it into a regular FIR. Large cases may be taken up by the IFSO unit of Delhi Police or by the CBI.
Follow the money with the IO
Ask the investigating officer which accounts have been frozen and how much is held. Once a frozen amount is linked to you, apply to the magistrate for its release, with your FIR, bank statements and an indemnity bond if asked.
Watch for the second scam
After a loss, victims are often called by 'recovery agents', 'cyber cell officers' or 'lawyers' who promise to return the money for a fee. That is another fraud. Frozen money comes back only through a court order, into your own account.
For a single UPI transfer or a smaller loss, our post on steps to report and recover money lost in a UPI fraud has a shorter checklist.
Common lines in the script and the truth
| What the caller says | What is actually true |
|---|---|
| 'You are under digital arrest.' | There is no such thing. Arrest is physical and must follow the BNSS. |
| 'A parcel in your name with drugs has been seized.' | Customs and courier companies do not transfer you to a police officer by phone. A genuine seizure leads to a written notice. |
| 'Your number will be blocked in two hours.' | TRAI does not call subscribers about crimes or to threaten disconnection. Any disconnection is handled by your own telecom operator. |
| 'Your Aadhaar is linked to a money laundering case.' | ED investigations begin with written summons under section 50 PMLA, served on you, requiring you to appear in person. |
| 'Do not tell your family; this is a national secret.' | The law requires the police to inform your family when you are arrested. |
| 'Transfer your funds to an RBI account for verification.' | The RBI does not hold accounts for individuals or verify private savings. No agency does this. |
| 'Here is a Supreme Court order / arrest warrant.' | Real orders are not sent on WhatsApp. Supreme Court orders can be checked on the court's website, and warrants are executed in person. |
| 'You will get the money back after the audit.' | The money goes through mule accounts and is withdrawn or converted within minutes. Nobody returns it voluntarily. |
Why do educated people fall for digital arrest scams?
Because the scam is built on fear and authority, not on greed. A job scam or an investment scam offers you something. A digital arrest call threatens you: with jail, with public disgrace, with your children's careers. People who have lived carefully and respect the law are, if anything, more frightened by an accusation of crime, because they have never dealt with the police and do not know what a real investigation looks like.
The scammers also control time and information. They keep the victim on the call, deny them sleep, forbid them from consulting anyone, and present a new 'document' each time doubt appears. The victim's own knowledge, of their name, Aadhaar and address, is fed back to them as proof. Retired people who live alone, or whose children live in another city or abroad, are targeted deliberately. There is no shame in having been deceived by a professional criminal operation, and the sooner it is reported, the better the chance of stopping some of the money.
What has the Supreme Court done about digital arrest scams?
The Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance of digital arrest scams in October 2025, after being told of the losses suffered by senior citizens, and sought responses from the Central Government, the states and the CBI. On 1 December 2025 it directed the CBI to investigate digital arrest scams across the country and asked states that had not given consent for CBI investigation to do so, so that the CBI could deal with the networks on a pan-India basis. The court has continued to monitor the matter.
For a victim, this does not change where you report: you still call 1930, file on the portal and go to your local cyber police station, which registers the FIR. It may change who eventually investigates a large case, and it has led to more attention to the mule accounts and the telecom and messaging accounts used in these scams. Keep your FIR number and acknowledgement number safe; if the case is transferred, they are how you will find it.
Which offences do the scammers commit?
Several, which is why FIRs in these cases usually cite many sections together. Pretending to be a police, CBI or ED officer is personating a public servant under section 204 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Taking money by putting the victim in fear of arrest is extortion under section 308. Inducing the victim to transfer money by deception is cheating under section 318(4), and cheating by pretending to be someone else is section 319. Fake warrants, court orders and agency letters attract the forgery provisions, including sections 336 and 340 (using a forged document as genuine). Section 61 covers the conspiracy among callers, account providers and money handlers.
Under the Information Technology Act 2000, section 66D punishes cheating by personation using a computer resource, and section 66C applies where someone's identity details are misused. Where the operation is run by an organised syndicate, the police may also invoke section 111 BNS on organised crime, which expressly includes cyber crimes.
People who rent out their bank accounts to these gangs, often students or daily wage earners paid a few thousand rupees, are not innocent bystanders in law. They are routinely arrested as part of the conspiracy, and the accounts are frozen. If someone offers you money to 'use' your bank account, refuse.
How can you check whether a notice or call is genuine?
Verify through a channel you find yourself, never through a number, link or 'senior officer' the caller gives you. If the caller says they are from a particular police station, find that police station's number on the state police website and call it. If they mention a court case, look it up on the eCourts services website by case number or party name. Income tax notices carry a Document Identification Number that can be checked on the income tax e-filing portal. A real agency will not object to your verifying; a fake one will insist you must not.
A genuine notice is a written document that tells you where and when to appear, under which provision, in which case, and who issued it. You can take it to an advocate before you go. If a real agency wants to question you, there is time to take advice: section 35 BNSS notices and section 50 PMLA summonses give a date, not a two-hour deadline.
When frightened clients call Advocate B.K. Singh's office while the 'officer' is still on the other line, the advice is always the same: put the phone down, send us whatever document they have shown you, and let us check it. The documents shown in these calls usually carry the same giveaways: wrong designations, case numbers in no court's format, seals copied from the internet, and an instruction to keep it secret that no genuine order contains.
A made-up example: three days on a video call
Here's a made-up example. Mr Saxena, a retired bank officer living alone in Vaishali, Ghaziabad, gets a call saying a parcel in his name containing MDMA and five passports has been seized at Mumbai airport. He is transferred to a 'Mumbai Police inspector', then to a 'CBI officer' on a Skype video call, who shows him an arrest warrant with his name and Aadhaar number and tells him his accounts are linked to a ₹68 crore money laundering case.
For three days he is told to keep the camera on, not to answer the door, and not to tell his son in Bengaluru. On the third day he is told that to prove his innocence he must move his savings to an 'RBI escrow account' for audit. He breaks two fixed deposits and transfers ₹48 lakh in four RTGS transfers. The calls stop that evening.
His neighbour, who notices he has not left the flat, hears the story and calls 1930 with him that night. An FIR is registered the next day at the cyber police station under sections 204, 308, 318(4), 319 and 340 BNS and section 66D of the IT Act. The trail shows the money split from the first account into nineteen others within an hour; about ₹7 lakh is still held when the freeze reaches them. His advocate applies to the magistrate for its release. The rest depends on the investigation of the account holders and the gang, which may take a long time.
Two things in this example are typical. The first transfer was the moment of highest risk, and the bank staff who processed the FD closure were never told the real reason. And the scam ended only when another person heard about it.
Protecting elderly parents from digital arrest calls
The most effective protection is a conversation, held before any call comes. Tell your parents plainly that no officer will ever arrest them over a phone or video call, that any caller who says 'don't tell your family' is a criminal, and that they will never be in trouble with you or with the law for hanging up and calling you first. Agree that they will call you, or a neighbour, before moving any large sum of money for any reason.
Practical banking steps help too: lower daily transfer limits on net banking and UPI, ask the bank whether it allows a nominated contact to be informed of large transactions, keep fixed deposits that cannot be broken online, and make sure they know the branch manager by name. Show them what a real police notice looks like, and save the numbers of their local police station and the 1930 helpline in their phone.
Is the bank responsible when a victim breaks an FD under pressure?
Generally not for the loss itself, because the victim authorised the transactions. The RBI framework that limits a customer's liability covers unauthorised electronic transactions, such as card or UPI misuse without the customer's involvement. A transfer made by the customer, even under deception, is treated as authorised.
The question is different where the bank itself failed: it ignored a timely fraud report, delayed passing it to the receiving bank, or allowed an account to be opened and used as a mule account in clear breach of its own know-your-customer duties. Those are claims of deficiency in service or negligence, decided case by case before the RBI Integrated Ombudsman or the consumer commission. Our post on bank deficiency in service and the consumer court explains how to choose between them. Do not let this question delay the police complaint.
What to collect for the complaint
The calls
- Phone numbers, including the first automated call
- WhatsApp, Skype or other IDs used
- Screenshots or recordings of the video call
- Names and designations the callers used
- Dates and times, and how long the calls lasted
The fake documents
- Every 'warrant', 'order', 'notice' or letter sent
- Any case number or FIR number they quoted
- Personal details they knew about you
- Messages telling you to keep it secret
The money
- Bank statements showing each transfer
- RTGS, NEFT or UPI references (UTR numbers)
- Fixed deposit closure or share sale records
- Receiving account numbers and bank names
- 1930 acknowledgement number and FIR copy
Mistakes that make things worse
- Staying on the call to 'clear your name'. Every hour on the call is an hour in which the scammers build pressure. Ending it is always safe.
- Verifying through the caller. Calling a number the caller gave you, or speaking to their 'senior officer', only connects you to another member of the gang.
- Keeping it from family out of embarrassment. Shame delays reporting, and delay lets the money move.
- Installing apps on instruction. Remote access apps give the caller control of your phone and banking apps.
- Paying a recovery fee. Anyone who asks for money to return your money is running a second scam.
- Deleting the chats afterwards. The numbers, IDs and fake documents are what the police need to trace the gang.
If you or a parent got such a call this week
- End any call where someone claims you are under digital arrest.
- Tell a family member or friend what was said, in full.
- Report the number on Chakshu or cybercrime.gov.in even if no money was lost.
- If money was transferred, call 1930 the same day with every transaction reference.
- Ask your bank in writing to raise the fraud with the receiving banks.
- Register an FIR at the cyber police station and keep the FIR copy.
- Save every screenshot, document and number; do not delete the chats.
- Lower transfer limits and talk to elderly relatives about these calls.
What if a real agency is actually looking for you?
Occasionally a person who receives a scam call is also, separately, involved in a genuine matter: a company under investigation, a pending cheque bounce case, a tax inquiry. The scam does not make the real matter disappear, and the real matter does not make the scam genuine. If you have reason to believe a real agency may want to question you, deal with it through an advocate, through the written notice, at the place named in it.
Our posts on preparing for an ED summons under section 50 PMLA and what to expect from a CBI notice for questioning explain how genuine notices work. The CBI cases page describes the firm's work before the special courts. None of these processes involves a video call, secrecy from your family or a money transfer.
How we help victims of digital arrest scams
We help victims and their families get the FIR registered with the correct sections, put the transaction trail in order for the IO, apply for release of frozen money before the magistrate, and deal with banks. We also check notices that clients are unsure about, which often takes a few minutes and settles the question. Advocate Sadhna Singh usually takes the first call from the family.
Our pages on cyber crime cases and cyber laws explain the wider work. If you want an advocate to look at a call, a notice or your transactions, the team of Advocate B.K. Singh at B.K. Singh & Associates can review it through our online enquiry page.
Frequently asked questions
Is digital arrest legal in India?
No. There is no provision for digital arrest in the BNSS or any other law. An arrest is physical, the person must be told the grounds, a relative must be informed, and the person must be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours.
Can the CBI or ED arrest me over a video call?
No. The CBI and the ED issue written notices and summonses requiring you to appear in person. An ED arrest requires written grounds of arrest. Neither agency questions or detains people over WhatsApp or Skype calls.
What should I do if I get a digital arrest call?
Disconnect, tell a family member, and do not transfer money, share OTPs or install any app. Report the number on Chakshu or cybercrime.gov.in, and call 1930 if you have already paid anything.
How do I report a digital arrest fraud?
Call 1930 for money lost, file a complaint on cybercrime.gov.in, and register an FIR at the district cyber police station. Give every transaction reference and the phone numbers and IDs the callers used.
Can money lost in a digital arrest scam be recovered?
Sometimes, in part. Money still in the receiving accounts when you report can be frozen and released by the magistrate. Money already withdrawn or moved abroad depends on the investigation, which can take a long time.
What did the Supreme Court order on digital arrest scams?
The Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance in October 2025 and, on 1 December 2025, directed the CBI to investigate digital arrest scams across the country, asking states to give consent where needed. Victims still report locally on 1930 and to the cyber police.
How can I verify if a police call is real?
Find the police station's number yourself on the official police website and call it. Look up any court case on the eCourts services website. A real agency sends a written notice and does not object to your verifying it.
Can the police send a notice on WhatsApp?
Summons and some notices can in certain cases be served electronically under the BNSS, but a genuine notice names the case, the provision, the officer and a place and date to appear in person. It never asks you to stay on a video call or pay money.
Which section applies to a digital arrest scam?
Usually section 204 BNS (personating a public servant), section 308 (extortion), section 318(4) (cheating), section 319 (cheating by personation), forgery provisions such as section 340, and section 66D of the IT Act.
Will the bank refund money I transferred during a digital arrest call?
Generally not, because you authorised the transfer. The bank may be accountable for its own failures, such as ignoring a timely fraud report, through the RBI Ombudsman or the consumer commission.
Is it a crime to let someone use my bank account for money?
Yes. People who rent out accounts to scam gangs are treated as part of the conspiracy, are arrested, and have their accounts frozen. Never let anyone use your account for payment, whatever you are offered.
Someone called saying they can recover my digital arrest money for a fee. Is it real?
No. Frozen money is released only by a court order into your own account, and police and banks charge nothing for it. Report the caller on 1930.
Written and reviewed at B.K. Singh & Associates
Advocate B.K. Singh
Founder of B.K. Singh & Associates. MCA, LL.B., LL.M., with more than twenty years of practice before the Supreme Court, the Delhi High Court, district courts and tribunals across Delhi NCR. This article explains the general law as of 24 October 2026; it is not legal advice on your facts.