Assam Police Busts Major SIM Card Racket Supplying OTPs for WhatsApp Accounts to Pakistan in ‘Operation Ghost SIM’

Dedicated action teams were formed for Dhubri and Morigaon districts in Assam, while special units were dispatched to Telangana and Rajasthan.

In a major crackdown, Assam Police has busted a large-scale racket involved in using fraudulent SIM cards to create WhatsApp accounts, with one-time passwords (OTPs) being routed to Pakistan for account activation. The operation, codenamed “Operation Ghost SIM,” was launched following a critical intelligence input from Gajraj Military Intelligence, revealing the racket’s operations across Assam, Rajasthan, and Telangana.

Assam Director General of Police (DGP) Harmeet Singh said that the first lead came from Gajraj Military Intelligence, which discovered several individuals sending OTPs to Pakistan to set up WhatsApp accounts with Indian numbers. Based on this input, technical analysis was conducted over several days, and a formal case was registered with the Assam Police Special Task Force (STF) on September 14.

Following strategic planning, Operation Ghost SIM was executed simultaneously in two districts of Assam, one district in Telangana, and two districts in Rajasthan. Dedicated action teams were formed for Dhubri and Morigaon districts in Assam, while special units were dispatched to Telangana and Rajasthan.

During the operation, Assam Police arrested seven suspects, identified as Saddik, Arif Khan, Sajid, Akeek, Arsad Khan, Mofijul Islam, and Jakariya Ahmad. In addition to these arrests, 14 more individuals have been detained from different locations in Dhubri, and legal action will be taken against them following proper interrogation.

DGP Singh stressed the significance of the operation, stating, “These SIM cards were not only used for cyber fraud but also for anti-national activities. There is clear evidence that some of these numbers were shared with hostile elements and were being used to create WhatsApp accounts that appear to be India-based, raising serious national security concerns.”

Also Read: 14-Year old Boy Killed, Two Injured as Suspected Bomb Explodes in Assam’s Tamulpur

For more news and updates, visit: Northeast Live

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