CBI arrests telecom official over alleged illegal sale of SIM cards for cybercrime

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), as part of its ongoing Operation Chakra-V, on Thursday (January 8, 2026) arrested an area sales manager of a telecom service provider (TSP) for the alleged illegal sale of SIM cards that were used in cybercrimes.

The agency identified the accused as “Binu Vidhyadharan, Vodafone Area Sales Manager, Delhi”.

In December 2025, the CBI detected an organised phishing network operating from areas around Delhi and Chandigarh. It allegedly provided bulk SMS services to cybercriminals, including foreign actors targeting Indian citizens.

“The accused had procured around 21,000 SIM cards in violation of Department of Telecom rules for facilitating transmission of bulk SMS, used by cybercriminals for sending phishing messages. Three persons, including a channel partner of the TSP, were arrested in December 2025 and are currently under judicial custody,” the agency said.

The alleged role of Mr. Vidhyadharan came to light during further investigation. The official, serving as area sales manager, was allegedly involved in facilitating the fraudulent issuance of SIM cards in bulk. He arranged dummy individuals, falsely projecting them as employees of Lord Mahavira Services India Private Limited, and submitted their documents to complete the KYC formalities, the CBI said.

Members of a family residing in Bengaluru were among those allegedly arranged by the official and shown as employees of the accused company. Copies of their Aadhaar cards were recovered from his possession. The SIM cards obtained through fraudulent means had been used for operating the phishing ecosystem exposed during the probe, as alleged.

“Phishing is the first key step in most cyber frauds. It uses mass SMSes, calls, or messages to lure victims with false offers of loans, investments, or threats,” the agency said.