New Delhi: The government has blocked the Wingo app for allegedly sending fraudulent SMSes from users’ phones using them as mules to allegedly carry out large-scale message-based cybercrimes, officials said on Friday.
The action was taken by the Union Home Ministry and its anti-cybercrime agency, Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), after getting numerous complaints against the Android application.
The agency said the app users were unknowingly becoming an accessory in an SMS fraud network run by cyber criminals.
Following the complaints, the government geo-blocked the app’s command and control centre. Four Telegram channels, having 1.53 lakh users, and over 50 YouTube videos promoting the application were also blocked, the I4C said.
According to I4C, Wingo was a “Telecom Mule as a Service” app and provided earnings based on SMS tasks. Once a user downloaded the application, it activated a telecom mule infrastructure which used to start sending messages through the user’s phone for carrying out cyber crimes. The messages used to reach 1.53 crore people every day, the agency said.
Over 1.53 lakh users, lured by daily small payments from the application, unknowingly allowed themselves to be part of these cyber crimes.
The app listed itself on the Android Play Store as a “multiplayer entertainment game that allows multiple participants to play in a live draw simultaneously”.
The Noida police had also flagged the misuse of the application after its role cropped up during the investigation in e-challan related cyber fraud.
“This app lures users with promises of quick earnings by having them perform SMS tasks and is potentially used in cyber fraud activities,” Additional DCP (cyber) Shavya Goyal had said on Thursday.
