Hyderabad Cybercrime Police arrested a 30-year-old software employee for allegedly creating a fake Instagram account and posting abusive, defamatory and sexually explicit comments targeting a woman.
According to V Aravind Babu, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Cyber Crimes, Hyderabad City, the accused, a resident of Kachiguda, allegedly created the fake profile to target a Hyderabad-based woman who is a politically exposed person.
In October 2025, he allegedly used the account to post objectionable comments on a video featuring the woman. The video was originally uploaded by the “Pura Local” Instagram channel and was later shared on social media, police said.
Based on the woman’s complaint, a case was registered under Sections 66(D) and 67 of the Information Technology Act and Sections 79 and 238 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Police said the accused allegedly used the fake account to hide his identity while posting offensive content with the intention of defaming and harassing the complainant.
One mobile phone was seized from his possession. Police advised people to take screenshots of abusive profiles, comments and timestamps before blocking or reporting such accounts, as the information could serve as evidence. The cybercrime unit also advised people to verify unknown social media accounts and avoid sharing or commenting on unverified or inflammatory content.
In a separate incident on Sunday, a 42-year-old private employee from Bollaram, Telangana, became a victim of cyber fraud in the name of an old currency exchange. According to police, the victim came across an advertisement on Instagram on July 26 offering exchange of old currency notes. He contacted the WhatsApp number provided in the advertisement, following which the fraudsters asked him to share photographs of the old currency.
The accused allegedly promised to pay Rs 99 lakh in exchange and sent fake documents, including PAN and Aadhaar copies, to gain his confidence.
They initially asked him to pay Rs 550 towards registration charges. Believing the offer, the victim transferred Rs 550 through PhonePe. Later, the fraudsters sent videos showing bundles of cash and a staged video claiming that police had stopped a person at an airport and demanded 1 per cent GST amounting to Rs 95,000.
Trusting the videos, the complainant transferred a total of Rs 95,000 through multiple transactions via PhonePe and Google Pay. After demanding more money, the victim realised that he had been cheated and approached the cybercrime helpline 1930. A complaint was registered. Based on the complaint, Bollaram Police registered a case on August 21 at 6:30 pm under Sections 318(4), 336(3), 340(2) of BNS and Section 66(D) of the IT Act, 2008. The investigation is being conducted by Detective Inspector M Prabhakar.
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