The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) Punjab arrested 12 members of an international cyber fraud network accused of impersonating foreign embassy officials and defrauding people through fake visa and immigration services.

Speaking at a press briefing on July 21, NCCIA Punjab Director Muhammad Ali Wasim said the network had been operating since 2019, targeting individuals seeking services from the embassies of Italy, Germany, Sweden, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. The group allegedly used fake Google business profiles, counterfeit websites, forged documents, call-forwarding, and caller ID spoofing to deceive victims. Some suspects also posed as Singapore Police officers during video calls to intimidate victims.

The arrests followed a raid on a fake call centre in Bahria Town Phase IV, Rawalpindi, where authorities seized 21 mobile phones, a vehicle, a Singapore Police uniform, phishing emails, fake appointment letters, PTCL records, Gmail accounts, and other digital evidence for forensic analysis.

In a separate operation, the NCCIA dismantled a phishing network operating the Tycoon2FA platform, which allegedly created more than 96,000 phishing applications,fake accounts, and malicious links targeting victims in Pakistan, the Americas, Central Asia, and Europe. Two suspects were arrested, and computers, servers, mobile phones, and storage devices were seized. The agency said proceeds from the fraud had been invested in properties in Islamabad, with confiscation proceedings underway.