Amazon teams up with Microsoft to combat impersonation scams in India

New Delhi: E-commerce major Amazon on Friday announced its collaboration with tech giant Microsoft to protect consumers from impersonation scams in India.

On Thursday, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said that it had conducted multiple criminal raids in various Indian cities against illegal call centres impersonating Microsoft and Amazon customer support.

According to the probe agency, the illegal call centres impacted over 2,000 customers from countries like the United States, Australia, Canada, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

This operation was supported by a joint criminal referral made by Amazon and Microsoft through joint prosecution agreements in the US and India, as the same cyber criminals were targeting both the company's customers.

“We are pleased to join forces with Microsoft, and we believe actionable partnerships like these are critical in helping protect consumers from impersonation scams,” Kathy Sheehan, vice president and associate general counsel, Business Conduct & Ethics, said in a statement.

Together, the companies are setting a precedent for the power of industry collaboration and the collective impact it can have in holding bad actors accountable.

"We will continue to work with Indian law enforcement agencies as well as authorities from countries of victims so that they can continue to act," the company said.

Moreover, the company mentioned that it had initiated takedowns of more than 20,000 phishing websites and 10,000 phone numbers being used as part of impersonation schemes in 2022.

It also has referred hundreds of bad actors across the globe to law enforcement authorities, which have resulted in arrests and raids on scam operations.

With inputs from IANS