Delhi HC directs Twitter to remove 1,200 fraudulent handles from the platform
Snapdeal had petitioned the Delhi High Court seeking direction to remove the 1,200 Twitter handles used to dupe online shoppers.
Ecommerce marketplace Snapdeal has successfully had removed nearly 1,200 fraudulent links associated with its site from Twitter following a order from the Delhi High Court.
Snapdeal had petitioned the Delhi High Court seeking a directive for action against the cyber scamsters by blocking the URLs or links. The ecommerce player said the scamsters were misusing Snapdeal’s name to run fraudulent schemes where the offers were extended through Twitter.
A press release from Snapdeal stated,
“Various entities that are in no way associated with Snapdeal had established URLs/links accessible through Twitter. These were in violation of the copyright and registered trademarks of Snapdeal and also sought to represent that they are the official twitter handles of Snapdeal.”
Explaining the modus operandi, Snapdeal said scamsters used handles in question to display certain telephone numbers claiming these numbers to be that of Snapdeal’s customer care service. Unsuspecting individuals who called these numbers were then sought to be enticed with rewards like cars and other such offers and led to make deposits in accounts controlled by the scamsters in order to claim such rewards.
In its petition, Snapdeal had submitted that such misrepresentation is fraudulent and intended to deceive the unsuspecting general public into believing that they are dealing with Snapdeal.
The court’s interim order came in a suit filed by Snapdeal. In the suit, Snapdeal has also impleaded various unidentified defendants who are the owners of the aforesaid URLs/links.
In December 2018, Snapdeal had secured an order from the Delhi High Court that directed the freezing of nearly 500 bank accounts used by scamsters to receive funds.
A Snapdeal spokesperson said, "Cyber frauds being perpetrated by groups of organised criminals by misusing names of leading companies is a serious industry problem. We are committed to fighting it through various means, including seeking judicial redress, educating users and collaborating with law enforcement authorities.”
