Kolkata: Loan fraud, in which a victim is duped with the offer of an incredible interest rate, has emerged to be the most common cyber crime in Kolkata, followed by WhatsApp video sextortion calls, which are used to blackmail victims into paying a hefty amount to avoid social stigma. Courier and fake police frauds, in which scamsters typically pose as Customs officers or cops or central agency officers and deman money, along with e-commerce delivery cancellation code frauds, where a victim is convinced into disclosing an OTP to access his or her bank accounts, together constitute another significant chunk of cyber frauds in the city. These findings were shared by cyber experts on Tuesday as October, the International Cyber Security Awareness Month, came to an end. The experts were assisted by Webel and the Indian School of Anti-Hacking (ISOAH) in the survey. Students on Tuesday held a cyber awareness walk in Sector V. Prizes were distributed to winners of a quiz contest, best poster-creators and best slogan-writers. The city has witnessed a sharp rise in cybercrimes with fraudsters coming up with innovative ways. Among the various scams, the above four were the most common frauds and they posed a challenge to law enforcers, pointed out experts and cops. Cyber expert Sandeep Sengupta, director ISOAH, said the findings were based on statistics obtained from police, news and social media and an analysis of trends. “WhatsApp and Telegram seem to be preferred platforms for committing the crimes,” he added.The Kolkata Police detective department’s cyber cell sent over 100 recommendations to Google to remove at least 100 fake apps from the Play Store. These apps enable fraudsters to access the users’ gallery, contact list and locations. “Once the scamsters gain access to the users’ phones, the harassment and economic losses start,” an expert said.WhatsApp video calls have turned sinister. “The present modus operandi involves targeting the salaried section and doctors, who receive such video calls during work hours. Shortly, a message is sent to the victim, claiming the woman the person had spoken to earlier had died by suicide, apparently hurt and insulted by the victim. A fake death certificate is also sent and demand for money starts, putting the victim in extreme fear,” said an officer.Extortions in the name of police and central agencies have risen alarmingly with cyber crooks duping people by extracting critical information from them, posing as enforcement agency officers. Fraudsters threaten the victims into paying by scaring them with legal action. Gullible victims are also still being convinced into sharing OTPs.