Fake CBI or Customs Officer Parcel Call over the phone

How it looks over the phone, the red flags and what to do.

Callers pretend to be bank staff, police, a courier, a telecom officer or a relative, and they try to keep you on the line while you act. Fake CBI or Customs Officer Parcel Call is one of the ways this shows up: An automated call says a parcel in your name was seized with illegal items, then a fake CBI or customs officer demands money. How to stay calm.

What fake cbi or customs officer parcel call looks like over the phone

• An unknown or international number, or a number that looks like a real office.
• A calm, official voice that already knows your name or the last digits of your card.
• Being told to stay on the line and not to tell your family.

The scammer needs only your phone number to start. The first voice is a recording that names a courier company and a city, so it feels like a routine delivery issue. Pressing a key to deny the parcel connects you to a live person who sounds official and uses legal-sounding terms. They ask you to confirm your name and Aadhaar, which they later quote back to you.

Red flags to check on the phone call

• A recorded call says a parcel in your name was seized.
• You never booked or expected any parcel.
• The caller threatens arrest or a warrant over the phone.
• Official-looking notices come on WhatsApp.
• The caller asks for an OTP, UPI PIN, card PIN or CVV.
• You are told that a case, arrest, block or penalty is coming within minutes.

What to do

1. Hang up and do not press any key on the recorded message.
2. If you want to check, use the courier's own app or the number printed on a real receipt.
3. Do not send any ID photo or pay anyone.
4. Call the bank or office on the number printed on your card, bill or official app, not on a number the caller gave.
5. Never share an OTP or PIN. No genuine staff member needs it.
6. If you already installed an app on the call, uninstall it and switch on airplane mode, then call your bank at once.

Report the number on the Sanchar Saathi portal (Chakshu facility). If money moved, call 1930 immediately.

If money or a code is already gone

1. Call 1930 at once with the account and amount you paid.
2. Inform your bank through the number on your card to ask for a hold on the transfer.
3. Make a complaint on cybercrime.gov.in with the call number and the WhatsApp notice.
4. Do not pay further 'release fees' even if the caller says it is the last step.

National Cyber Crime Helpline: 1930; report at cybercrime.gov.in.

Safeavio Sentinel's scam check can read a pasted message or a transcript you write down and show reasons such as fake authority, a threat of arrest and a money demand. The Money Shield checklist asks you to pause and verify before paying. It cannot listen to calls or detect a live caller, and it cannot confirm that any parcel exists. Check shipments only in the courier's official app.

Full guide: Fake CBI or Customs Officer Parcel Call: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: WhatsApp, fake app.

Questions