Islamabad – The National Cybercrime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) has released a major list of warnings, publishing a list of 45 applications, which are illegal and risky. It is an important measure that the agency took to improve digital security and keep citizens safe against online fraud and data theft.
The NCCIA has highly recommended that people be very cautious and not use such applications, which comprise a combination of sports betting apps and services associated with SIM verification.
A News International’s correspondent shared a list of banned apps on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
Sports Betting Apps
The 46 applications identified on the list are a wide range of digital threats that spread through multiple platforms. The most notable of them are these platforms are Aviator Game, Chicken Road, 1xBet, Betway, Dafabet, 22Bet, Melbet, Parimatch, Bet365, Plinko, 10Cric, Rabona, Casumo, BetWinner, 888Starz, and Thunderpick, often lure users with promises of easy winnings, which investigations have shown to be fraudulent. Users of these apps can lose money on rigged systems, and their personal financial data including credit card numbers and bank account numbers can be stolen.
Sim Verification Apps
The list also contains the applications that are associated with SIM verification such as Sim Owner Details, Pak Sim Data, Sky Sim Data, and Sim Tracker. The apps tend to lure the user into giving out sensitive personal data that may be utilized later in identity theft and other malicious activities, including unauthorized SIM cloning or eavesdropping on personal communications.
Trading Apps
The list also includes some unregulated forex and binary trading companies. Apps like Binomo, IQ Option, Pocket Option, Deriv, Olymp Trade, OctaFX, and Quotex have been deemed as illegal because they are described as having a high risk of financial exploitation to unsuspecting users. Such platforms may not have adequate regulatory framework and do not have sufficient security measures to secure the funds that investors deposit and thus making investors vulnerable to huge losses.
An official at the NCCIA pointed out that the move by the agency is proactive to ensure the citizens are not victims of these scams. Findings of the investigation showed that such applications are usually not regulated adequately and do not employ the requisite security measures to safeguard the information of users.
According to the spokesperson, this is not to block these apps but to sensitize the people on the dangers of using them. Although the NCCIA advisory is merely a cautionary measure, it urges citizens to exercise caution and uninstall any of the specified applications on their devices as soon as possible.
The call to action is a direct follow-up to the increasing complaints of cybercrimes involving this kind of an app.
