When the Internet Becomes a Trap

Credit By: ASIF MUJTABA

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• 04 May 2026

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From fake job offers to phishing calls, digital fraud is quietly turning everyday internet use into a serious public concern

In Kashmir, the internet has become both a lifeline and a trap. It connects students to classrooms, traders to customers, patients to hospitals, and families to one another across distances and uncertainty. Yet alongside this digital convenience, a dangerous shadow has been growing quietly: the spread of online scams. What once seemed like a problem limited to large cities or distant countries has now entered our homes, our phones, and our daily routines in Kashmir.

The rise of online fraud in the Valley is not accidental. As more people have adopted smartphones, digital banking, UPI payments, e-commerce platforms, and social media marketplaces, fraudsters have found new opportunities to exploit trust, urgency, and lack of awareness. The scam is no longer the crude fraud of the past. It comes polished, persuasive, and often disguised as help, opportunity, or authority. A fake bank official asks for an OTP. A caller claims a KYC update is pending. A message promises a job, a loan, a prize, or a parcel delivery. A social media seller advertises a product at an unbelievable price. In many cases, by the time the victim realises something is wrong, the money is gone.

Kashmir presents a particularly sensitive setting for this menace. Ours is a society where trust still plays a central role in everyday life. People often believe what sounds official, especially if it comes with pressure, technical language, or the appearance of legitimacy. Many first-generation internet users are still learning the rules of digital caution. Elderly citizens, small traders, students, and even educated professionals can fall prey to scams because fraud today targets emotion more than intelligence. Fear, greed, urgency, and confusion are the scammer’s real weapons.

One cannot ignore the social conditions that make the region vulnerable. Unemployment among youth remains high, and with it comes the lure of online job offers, work-from-home schemes, and quick-income promises. Many young people seeking employment or freelance work are easily drawn into fake recruitment drives or fraudulent websites that ask for registration fees. Likewise, families looking for affordable products may be trapped by false advertisements and cloned shopping pages. In a place where economic anxiety is real, digital fraud feeds on aspiration.

Another alarming aspect is the misuse of social media. Platforms that should enable communication are increasingly being used for impersonation, phishing, and emotional manipulation. Fake accounts pretending to be friends, journalists, officials, or business representatives are now common. Some scams are financial; others are reputational and psychological. A hacked WhatsApp account can be used to ask relatives for money. A stolen photograph can be misused to create fake identities. A vulnerable young person can be blackmailed after being lured into a deceptive online interaction. The damage is not always measured in rupees alone.

What makes the issue more serious in Kashmir is that digital literacy has not kept pace with the expansion of digital technologies. People have learned how to use apps, but not always how to use them safely. Knowing how to send money is not the same as knowing how to protect one’s banking details. Knowing how to open a social media account is not the same as understanding privacy settings, suspicious links, or identity theft. We have embraced the digital world quickly, but our awareness systems have remained slow.

This gap must be addressed urgently. Online scam awareness should not remain confined to occasional police advisories or scattered news reports. It should become a public education effort. Schools and colleges must include basic digital safety in their teaching. Banks should regularly educate customers in simple local language, not only through fine print and formal notices. Telecom providers, government departments, and media institutions should collaborate on sustained public messaging. Mosques, community groups, and local leaders can also play an important role in spreading caution, especially among older and less tech-savvy citizens.

Law enforcement, too, has a crucial role, but prevention must accompany policing. Cyber cells may register complaints, but recovery of lost money is often difficult once fraud has occurred. That is why rapid reporting systems, stronger grievance mechanisms, and better coordination between banks, telecom companies, and cybercrime authorities are essential. Victims should not feel ashamed to report scams. Silence only helps fraudsters thrive. Society must stop blaming victims and start recognising that cybercriminals are skilled manipulators who exploit human vulnerability.

The media in Kashmir also has a special responsibility. Newspapers, radio, and digital outlets should treat online scams not as isolated incidents but as a growing public-interest issue. Regular columns, case-based awareness reports, and explanatory journalism can help people identify fraud patterns before they become victims. A well-informed public is the strongest firewall any society can have.

At a deeper level, the spread of online scams is a reminder that technology is never neutral in its impact. It reflects the strengths and weaknesses of the society using it. If convenience grows without caution, exploitation follows. If access expands without awareness, vulnerability deepens. Kashmir cannot afford to celebrate digital progress while ignoring digital danger.

The internet is now woven into the fabric of our lives, and there is no turning back. Nor should there be. But as Kashmir moves further into the digital age, it must do so with open eyes. The fight against online scams is not only about protecting bank accounts; it is about protecting dignity, trust, and social confidence in a rapidly changing world. In the end, the real challenge is not whether Kashmir will become more digital. It is whether we will become digitally wise.

(The Author is a lecturer in HED and Columnist)