The management of a leading company that deals in beauty products went into a tizzy after it emerged that a website was created using the company’s name to cheat people.
The company, which has corporate offices in Lower Parel and Prabhadevi, filed a complaint at the NM Joshi Marg Police Station in Lower Parel, alleging that in the past two months, it received several communications from the citizens saying they were contacted by people claiming to be the company’s employees. The fraudsters duped their victims saying they had won prizes such as air-conditioners, laptops, TVs and iPhones through a lucky draw and induced the gullible victims to pay in the guise of advance GST, the complaint said.
The police said that the company has two official websites on which customers can make purchases of its products. In July and August, the company's customer care service officials received complaints from citizens that they were contacted by some people claiming to be company employees. “The victims said that the fraudsters used to chat with them on WhatsApp and would send employee ID cards to gain their trust,” a police officer said.
The victims have shared information about the bogus website and contact numbers used by the fraudsters with the company officials. The company, worried about its reputation, compensated the cheated citizens. An internal probe by the company revealed at least six bogus websites in its name.
A case has been registered under the Indian Penal Code sections 419 (cheating by impersonation) and 420 (cheating) and sections 66 (computer-related offences) and 66C (identity theft) of the Information Technology Act.
