PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
Uttarakhand police blocked 51 fake websites and URLs, 111 mobile numbers, froze 56 bank accounts and reported and blocked 30 WhatsApp numbers in connection with cyber fraud related to helicopter ticket bookings for Kedarnath Yatra. Every year, thousands of pilgrims from across the country and abroad book online helicopter tickets to visit Kedarnath. Cybercriminals exploit this demand by creating fake websites, social media pages and advertisements to defraud users, the deputy superintendent of police of cyber crime police unit of Uttarakhand Special Task Force (STF) Ankush Mishra said.
He stated that the STF has been taking continuous action to stop such fraudulent activities for past three years in coordination with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
He informed that in 2023, the STF blocked 64 fake websites and in 2024, it identified and blocked 18 websites, 45 Facebook pages and 20 bank accounts. Mishra said that the Uttarakhand police, with support from technical and legal teams, have scaled up action in 2025 to counter the growing use of social media by fraudsters. He said that deputy inspector general (Law and Order) Dhirendra Gunjyal is coordinating legal notices to Meta under Section 79(3) (b) of the Information Technology Act to force the platform to remove suspicious content. The State government has designated him as the nodal officer for this purpose.
The DSP said that the STF has been monitoring suspicious activity daily under SSP STF Navneet Singh and he remains in contact with I4C, bank administrators, telecom providers and Meta’s nodal officer Ashwin Madhusudan to expedite the takedown of fake content. The DSP claimed that due to STF’s efforts in 2024, Google implemented restrictions on keywords related to ‘Kedarnath heli ticket booking’, reducing the visibility of fake advertisements. The same kind of regulation is now being pursued with Meta to prevent fraudulent content from appearing on Facebook and Instagram.
Singh also informed that last year Mishra and sub inspector Ashish Gusain led the team that blocked the highest number of fake websites. However, cybercriminals have now shifted from websites to Facebook pages, using advertisement boosts to attract victims. The police urge the public to book Kedarnath helicopter tickets only through the official partner, IRCTC. People are advised not to trust advertisements or pages on Facebook for ticket booking. They appealed to report any suspicious link, website or advertisement to STF Cyber Police Station via email at ccps.deh@uttarakhandpolice.uk.gov.in. Victims of financial cyber fraud should immediately contact the 1930 helpline.
