New social media trend raises concerns among cybercrime police

Bengaluru social media trend: People asking for donations to buy high-end bikes, raising concerns of cybercrime.

Popular social media platforms are now awash with reels of people asking audiences to contribute ₹1 to ₹5 to buy high-end sports bikes. These posts also display a QR code asking people to make payments, claiming the account holder is in penury.

A social media account that goes by the name NimmaBike posted a reel with text in Kannada that read, “Day-7, I am a poor man without a father. I need funds to buy a bike, and please donate ₹ 1. I need money; please help.” The post was seen by more than 1 million users and liked by 21,500 netizens.

Another account, DinaGt650, has posted multiple posts saying he wants to buy a GT-650 bike and will continue to post a reel every day, making this appeal until 4,12,590 people donate ₹1 to buy the bike he wants. He has posted 45 such posts to date, and each post has gathered several thousand views. 

While many users have likened it to begging, many users have also contributed to these account holders. Over a hundred social media accounts are posting such videos asking for money to buy high-end bikes. These accounts post QR codes and UPI payment addresses for audiences to make the payment.

This has now alerted the cybercrime police, who fear this may have emerged as a new modus operandi to cheat people. A senior cybercrime police official said this had become an easier way out for people to make money, misusing the emotions of people.

“Most of these accounts are fraudulent, and if anyone complains, we will take action against them and ensure they are deactivated. There are also concerns that this may be misused to gain access to user’s accounts,” the official said, appealing to people not to fall prey to such posts.