Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Police has asked Google to remove apps promoting fake online sales of Kerala Lottery. Meta has also been asked to remove advertisements of such apps. Cyber ​​patrols by the police have uncovered 60 fake online lottery apps. Besides, 25 fake Facebook profiles and 20 websites were also discovered.

Advertisements with titles like ‘Kerala Mega Million Lottery’ and ‘Kerala Summer Ssason Dhamaka’ promising online sale of Kerala state lottery were circulated on WhatsApp, Telegram and Instagram. The user received a message saying that the Kerala government has launched an online lottery and that by placing a bet of Rs 40, one can win Rs 12 crore.

When Rs 40 is sent to the number, a tampered image of the Kerala lottery will be sent through WhatsApp. Once the draw is over, the tampered results will be sent to the user. The image of the ticket would match the number that has won Rs 500,000, a Kerala Police press release said.

In the next step, a caller introduces himself as a government representative and says that if the prize money is to be credited, one needs to transfer some money for GST and stamp duty. When this money is transferred, the caller says the prize money has been withheld by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and they will demand more money to clean up the mess. At each step, fake documents and videos are presented to give credibility to the story.

Police have said that anyone who falls victim to such a scam should call 1930 so that the police can intervene.