Honey trapping thrives on lockdown loneliness

Sex-bait cases in Bengaluru are dramatically up, but few victims file complaints, police say

Earlier this month, Bengaluru police arrested a 38-year-old woman for honey trapping and blackmailing a man.

Kavitha C S, former teacher in a government school in Chikkamagaluru district, was arrested after an Indiranagar resident filed a complaint against her.

The two had met on a matrimonial site, and when they eventually met in person, she allegedly recorded their private moments, and used the footage to blackmail
him.

She had already taken a gold chain from him and had foisted a false rape case, according to his complaint.

Such honey traps are more common than people imagine, says a police officer. “We just received a complaint the day before yesterday,” he says.

A Bengaluru man met a girl who said she was a Thai model. They planned a special date in Bengaluru, and he paid Rs 50,000, purportedly for tickets and a hotel room.

“The girl never showed up. She was sitting in Mizoram, after taking his money and collecting his personal data. Many sell this information to unsecured apps and BPOs to make more money,” he says.

Blackmailers don’t necessarily meet their victims in person. “If you get on a video call, they grab some footage and then morph it on to intimate videos,” he
says.

The footage is then uploaded on a private YouTube link.

“They share this link with the victim, saying they will upload it on porn sites if they aren’t paid a ransom,” explains the officer.

The cases that become public don’t reveal the extent of the racket. “Most cases involving people in high places never become public,” he says.

Pandemic hike

The number of honey trap cases has increased exponentially since the pandemic broke out, he says.

Akancha Srivastava, founder of Akancha Against Harassment, says that this increase can simply be attributed to an increase in reporting.

“People are more lonely and hence more vulnerable. During the lockdown, people were trapped at home and spending more time online,” explains Akancha, who describes her campaign as ‘India’s largest social impact initiative against cyber harassment’.

Stay alert

While both women and men fall victim to such ploys, in most cases, the offenders are women and the victims men.

People across all age groups are at risk. “Elderly women feeling lonely and younger people looking for relationships are both vulnerable,” says Akancha.

People have to be more careful about who they meet online. “If a random person on the road asks for your personal information or bank details, you wouldn’t give it away. So, why would you do that online?” she says.

If a person is getting too friendly too fast, then take a step back, she advises.

Legal perspective

Criminal lawyer Siji Malayil says honey trapped people compromise with the blackmailers, fearing loss of reputation. This, he says, is also the reason why it has become such a widespread crime today.

The smart thing to do would be to register a complaint.

“Even in the recent case, the teacher was caught because the victim registered a case,” he says.

Even if blackmailers use a fake identity online, the police can track them down.

Once identified, they can be charged with fraud, cheating, impersonation and extortion. They face up to 10 years of imprisonment.

“This is, however, a bailable offence,” he says. However, if the culprit is not in the city, the case may not proceed too far as the police jurisdiction ends.

“Victims need to, nevertheless, pursue legal action. Collect evidence,” the police officer suggests.

Catfishing vs honey trapping

While both include impersonation for personal gain, catfishing is usually done to lure someone into a relationship.

The objective of catfishing is to exploit the victim financially either by gaining sympathy or by extracting bank details.

More women fall victim to catfishing, while men are more likely to be victims of honey trapping, say those trying to create awareness.

With catfishing, the criminal quickly moves on to the next prey. Honey trapping is more insidious, and longer-term.

It leads to identity theft, legal trouble, physical violence, extortion and in extreme cases, even physical violence.