Fake website offering Kerala lottery tickets detected, cyber police launch probe
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): A probe has been launched after authorities detected a fake website of the Kerala lottery offering online ticket purchase, police said on Thursday.
The Thiruvananthapuram Cyber Police registered a case and began an investigation following a complaint lodged by the Deputy Director of the Kerala Lottery Directorate on Tuesday, officials said.
According to police, the Kerala Lottery Directorate recently learned of the fake website keralastatelottery.site.
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The website carried the department's official emblem, pictures of Kerala ministers, and details taken from the official website, police said.
Claiming to be the official website, it is suspected of running fake online lotteries that offer rewards.
Police said that people who logged in to the website were also provided with lottery details via WhatsApp.
Police said the number of people who may have lost money after purchasing lotteries on the website is under investigation.
Details are also being collected about those who created and operated the website, police added.
The case has been registered under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act for cheating and impersonation.
Kerala lotteries are widely popular, and people from neighbouring states also purchase tickets.
The Kerala Lottery department conducts lottery draws daily.
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Viral claim of Indian arrested for spying in Bahrain found to be false
New Delhi: A viral claim on social media alleging that an Indian national named Nitin Mohan was arrested in Bahrain for spying for Israel has been found to be false, with the image circulating online likely generated or altered using artificial intelligence.
The photo is being circulated widely on social media platforms, including a Pakistani X account currently withheld in India, shared an image purportedly showing, “Authorities in Bahrain have arrested an Indian national, Nitin Mohan, a telecommunications engineer, on allegations of espionage. According to reports, he was collecting sensitive geospatial data, photos, and videos of key locations and allegedly passing them to Israel’s intelligence agency.”
A fact-check by India Today revealed that the photo is likely AI-generated or AI-edited. We also did not find any report of the Bahrain government arresting an Indian national named Nitin Mohan.
However, a fact check found no credible evidence supporting the claim. Visual examination of the viral image showed several inconsistencies indicating that it was likely AI-generated or edited. The reflections in both eyes do not align. The fingers on one hand are blurred and appear to merge into the fist. The links between the handcuffs also look flimsy.
Further verification found no official reports of an Indian national named Nitin Mohan being arrested in Bahrain.
A press release issued on March 9 by Bahrain’s Police Media Centre stating that they had arrested six Asians for filming and sharing videos of Iranian aggression and glorifying hostile acts that could disturb security and public order.
According to the release, five of the arrested individuals were Pakistani nationals, Afzal Khan, Muhammad Muaz Akbar, Ahmad Mumtaz, Arsalan Sajid and Abdul Rahman Abdul Sattar, and one was a Bangladeshi national, Muhammad Israfil Mir. Their photographs also did not match the viral image circulating online.
Media reports from Gulf Daily News and Arab Times confirmed that Bahrain’s Interior Ministry arrested six individuals of Asian nationalities for recording and sharing videos glorifying Iranian aggression.
Additionally, India’s Ministry of External Affairs Fact Check wing stated on March 10 that the claim about an Indian national being arrested in Bahrain was “false and baseless.”
Authorities have cautioned that the viral image and accompanying claim are misleading, confirming that the claim is false and part of misinformation circulating online.
