The Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs has asked Google to remove 15 advertiser pages on its Ads Transparency platform that were allegedly used to promote a fraudulent “pencil-packing” work-from-home scheme.
The directions were issued through a notice dated November 28, reviewed by Moneycontrol.
The advertisers, identified through the Google Ads library maintained for public transparency, were allegedly circulating paid advertisements impersonating Hindustan Pencil Pvt. Ltd.
The ads promised easy work-from-home opportunities and earnings ranging between Rs 30,000 and Rs 40,000 per month. According to the notice, the claims were entirely fabricated and used to lure individuals into fraudulent activity.
The agency said the ads violate provisions of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and certain sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Under Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act and Rule 3(1)(d) of the IT Rules, intermediaries are required to remove unlawfully hosted content once notified by a government agency. The notice directs Google to disable access to the listed URLs within 36 hours of communication.
I4C also noted that the listings amount to misleading users through impersonation and financial deception.
It added that the impersonation of a well-known domestic manufacturer to promote unrealistic earnings could result in financial losses for individuals responding to these ads. Screenshots of the advertiser pages were appended as annexures in the notice.
The incident comes at a time when cybercrime investigations are increasingly tracking fraudulent use of advertising and promotional infrastructure, including platforms operated by large intermediaries.
While job-fraud scams have long existed on social media, the latest case highlights how paid advertising tools can also be exploited to reach a wider audience.
Moneycontrol has reached out to Google for comments on the matter and the article will be updated when a response is received.
If a intermediary fails to comply take down notices sent under Section 79 (3)(b) of the IT Act, the platform can lose its safe harbour provisions -- the provision under IT Act which gives such platforms immunity from content posted by third party.
Recently, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology announced , only a senior officer at the rank of joint secretary or above, or in case of law enforcement officials at the rank of deputy inspector general of police or above can send take down notices under Section 79 (3)(b) of the IT Act to social media platforms.
This replaced the existing procedure of junior officials passing content take down orders. For example, in the recent past, in State governments, police officers at the rank of sub inspectors and assistant sub inspectors could send take down orders to social media platforms.
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