Debjyoti De, the head of an information technology (IT) company in Dhaka, came across a strange experience when he came to Sylhet with his family during the Eid holidays. He came to Sylhet for a week with his wife and children to relieve the fatigue of the busy city life. While staying at a relative's house in Shahjalal suburb of the city, a small message suddenly came on his mobile phone. The message claimed that the vehicle he used had been booked for violating traffic laws under the 'intelligent video surveillance system' and legal action would be taken if the fine was not paid within the stipulated time.
Devajyoti was a bit surprised after reading the small message but later got shocked. Because, on the day the traffic law violation was alleged in the message, his car was kept in his own garage in Dhaka. He himself was staying in Sylhet with his family. However, according to the message, AI-based camera surveillance in Dhaka caught his car violating the law.
Debjyoti Dey said, “At first I really thought about the matter. Because, for a few days, I was seeing the news in the media about the initiation of traffic case proceedings through AI cameras in Dhaka. I suddenly got worried when I got such a message. After checking the website, I got suspicious. Finally, I contacted BRTA and confirmed that it is part of a fraud.”
Not only Devjyoti, many car owners in different areas of Sylhet have received similar messages recently. Fraudsters are sending these messages impersonating Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA). It is claimed that through the 'intelligent video surveillance system', evidence of traffic law violations has been found against the concerned vehicle. It is then instructed to visit a specific website and pay the fine.
Some messages also refer to viewing 'Electronic Evidence Image' and 'Administrative Penalty Notice'. The language and presentation are designed in such a way that common people easily mistake it as a government message.
Gautam Chakraborty, a private bank official from Sylhet Nagar's Dakbungalow Road area, reported a similar experience. He said, “I already knew the news about AI cameras in Dhaka. So, I got scared when I saw the message. I thought there might be a case. Later I noticed that the website link was not like any official website. After that, I found out that it is completely fake.”
Investigations revealed that fraudsters have created fake BRTA websites and are sending fine and case messages to vehicle owners from different numbers. Screenshots of some such messages have come to the hands of this reporter. It can be seen that the messages are sent from foreign numbers.
Messages sent from at least two numbers were verified, with their international calling code (+63), which is used for the Philippines. The two numbers are +639286296306 and +639496589185. Although the language and content of the messages are different, the purpose is the same—to entice the customer to enter a website and pay the fine.
On investigation, it was found that the websites used in these messages do not match the actual website of BRTA. Government websites are usually hosted on the 'gov.bd' domain. But, websites used by fraudsters are using unfamiliar and suspicious domains, which easily indicate fraud.
Technology analyst Khairul Alam said, “The biggest sign of such fraud is the number from which the message is sent. Government organizations usually use their own numbers or designated shortcodes. But, these messages sent from foreign numbers are clearly part of the fraud.”
He said, “Nowadays, people are both interested in artificial intelligence or AI technology, but also a little worried. Fraudsters are exploiting that state of mind. They are creating messages in such a way that people get scared and quickly enter the link or pay money.”
According to him, these websites can be used not only to grab money but also to collect personal information. There is a risk of theft of important personal information including user's mobile number, national identity card information, bank account, debit or credit card information.
Attempts were made to contact several officials of the Sylhet divisional office to get BRTA's statement on this matter, but none of them could get their statement.
Sylhet Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner (Traffic) Sudipta Roy termed the matter as a clear hoax.
He said, “AI-based traffic case proceedings have not yet started outside Dhaka. As a result, there is no question of such cases in Sylhet. Fraudsters are trying to exploit people's ignorance and fear to grab money.”
Sudipta Roy added, “We are working to raise awareness so that no one is misled by such messages. One must verify the matter before entering any link and before making any payment.”
He said, technology-based fraud has changed a lot now. Earlier, fraud was done by winning lottery, lure of job offer or fear of closing mobile banking account. Now, modern and tech-savvy terms like 'AI surveillance', 'digital litigation' and 'smart traffic system' have been added to that list. A warning message has also been given by the concerned authorities in this regard. Common people are urged to be aware and not be confused.
