RAK cops empower students to crack down on cyberbullying

Ras Al Khaimah - Students are advised never to respond to unknown people as fraudsters often pretend to be someone you can trust.

Don't respond to strangers as online scammers fake caller ID info while trying to win your trust, warned the Ras Al Khaimah Police as it launched a campaign in colleges to raise students' awareness against cyberbullying.
"The drive is meant to ensure public privacy and protect teenage students against scammers who use various tricks to siphon off people's money, while exploiting them," said Major Khalid Hassan Al Naqbi, head of media affairs section, RAK Police.
Thousands of brochures - in Arabic, English and Urdu - will be distributed to the students, spelling out tips on proper and safe use of websites and social media networks.
These will warn people about the common mistakes that make the internet users vulnerable to cyberbullying or online exploitation, Al Naqbi pointed out.
"Students are advised never to respond to unknown people as fraudsters often pretend to be someone you can trust, even as they fake caller ID information," he added.
"Don't fall for those lucrative prizes and free trial offers, he added. "Never divulge personal information to anyone, while using the internet at public places," Al Naqbi said.
The police urged students to immediately report any suspicious practices to the law enforcement bodies on toll free nos. 999, 901 or 072053441.
"Involving police in any scam or suspicious act from the very beginning keeps the public safe against scammers and online bullying as reported in many cases."
Don't download unsafe apps with 'special features'
A few months back, the UAE Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) issued repeated warnings to residents who download unsafe applications with 'special features'.
The warning read: "Beware of 'WhatsUp Gold' and other third-party applications that claim to include special features. Such applications are unsafe and threaten your privacy."
WhatsApp has been used in a number of scams and criminal activities. Recently, a group of hackers posing as members of WhatsApp's support team tried to dupe unsuspecting users into giving them access to their accounts to hijack sessions.
Earlier, the TRA had issued a notification telling users what to do if their accounts are hacked: "The user needs to remove and reinstall WhatsApp at a different time of the day. They should immediately inform relatives and friends about hacking and urge them not to respond to any messages coming from their number on WhatsApp."
Fake prize scam
Some time back, three African men stood trial at the Ras Al Khaimah Criminal Court for forging signatures of others to buy mobile cards, and using the same in siphoning Dh42,000 from a woman.
The suspects called the victim on her mobile phone and lured her into believing that she had won a big prize money. They asked her to deposit Dh42,000 in a local account so she would be able to get the prize.
The victim followed their instructions and deposited the money in the said account. However, she didn't receive the prize money as promised. It was then that she realised that she had been fleeced and consequently, approached the RAK Police for help.
Investigations led the CID men to the hideout of the alleged mobile prize scammers. They were nabbed and charged with forgery and fraud.
ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com

• Ras Al Khaimah