Officer: Please remember, you should not share any details of cards or bank accounts with anyone over the phone.
Senior citizen: What if the caller says that my account will be blocked?
Officer: Please tell the caller you will visit the bank and do the needful but don't share any details or click on a link or download an app.
The conversation was a slice of a street corner meeting on Monday evening, between a team of officers from Thakurpukur police station and residents of Bakultala in Behala on the southwestern fringes of Kolkata.
Many police stations in Kolkata have been conducting similar programmes, virtual and physical.
The venue of Monday’s meet was the Durga dalan of a club. For close to an hour, the officers had a chat with residents. Many in the audience were senior citizens, who are tormented by ever-changing banking rules, unresponsive bank personnel and increasing use of technology.
Crooks have preyed on the helplessness of ordinary citizens.
The officers warned the audience against sharing any details over the phone.
“Earlier, your account would be debited only if you shared an OTP. Now, clicking on a link or installing an app may lead to money being siphoned off from your account. So, the simplest precaution is not sharing any details over the phone,” an officer said.
A senior citizen asked if “taking a call from an unknown number” could lead to trouble.
The officer said answering a call was not a problem as long as no detail was shared. “Do not trust anyone,” he said.
Similar programmes are being organised in other parts of the city, the police said.
Gariahat police station in the south and Burtola in the north have organised Zoom sessions with residents, mostly senior citizens. The sessions focussed on cyber crime.
Members of Pronam, the Kolkata police project for senior citizens, have been part of the sessions.
In some cases, cops helped the members get familiarised with the technology so they could attend the sessions.
This newspaper has reported many times on a surge in online frauds duping Kolkatans, including senior citizens. Kolkata has a large elderly population who live alone either by choice or because their sons and daughters live elsewhere in the country or abroad.
Such people are especially vulnerable to online frauds, according to the police.
“The nature of online fraud has evolved. Our efforts to prevent them should also evolve accordingly,” said a senior officer at Lalbazar.
A couple of months ago, Alipore police station had organised a camp with residents at Gopalnagar, where officers discussed the “dos and don’ts” to check online fraud.
Similar leaflets have also been distributed at homes in several parts of the city.
On Monday, the police officers in Bakultala also dwelled on Pronam. Kolkata police started Pronam in 2009 with the aim of regularly monitoring the elderly who live alone and running official background checks on their caregivers.
The project has expanded in scale and now caters to close to 20,000 senior citizens. The cops help the members with medical and several other emergencies.
“Many of you have children living abroad or outside the state. Please contact us in need and we will do all we can to ensure your health and safety,” said an officer.
The officer-in-charge stressed the importance of CCTV cameras. “I can see your club has CCTV cameras. But please spread the word and encourage others to follow suit. These are our eyes,” he said.
