The central government and cyber experts have warned against a new online scam, where fraudsters are making use of the e-challan system to dupe people.
The e-challan system, which began in a phased manner in 2012 and was fully introduced by 2017, has more or less functioned as an efficient way to track and pay fines for traffic violations on the go. But, it is now being used by scamsters to defraud people via bogus links and text messages.
In an advisory message, the Centre said by clicking these bogus links, fraudsters can “hack into bank accounts”. It mentioned the original and fake links through which these frauds can occur, while also giving an example of a bogus SMS alert about pending e-challans being sent to people nowadays.
ORIGINAL LINK: https://echallan.parivahan.gov.in/
FAKE LINK: https://echallanparivahan.in/
The government also said: “If you receive a link for traffic challan, don’t click these links. As clicking upon these links for payment, fraudsters can hack your bank account.”
advertisementFinance expert and author-columnist Tamal Bandyopadhyay raised awareness about the new scam on the internet. “Beware… A new vehicle on the Fraud Street: E-challan scam,” he said in a post on X.
Over the years, the e-challan system has been fraught with a number of issues. People have accused the traffic department of sending incorrect challans, challans issued on another car registration than their own, or even challans with unusually high penalty amounts among others.
Otherwise, it is fairly easy to pay a traffic fine online. A vehicle owner receives an SMS alert for a traffic violation, which has a link redirecting the person to pay the challan through the website of the city traffic police. The challan will have a snapshot of the vehicle with the time stamp and location of the violation committed. Once the payment is through, the person receives a receipt of the challan issued in the name of the traffic police.
