Ujjain (Madhya Pradesh) [India], June 21 (ANI): Ujjain Police have taken major action against cybercriminals targeting devotees of the Mahakaleshwar Temple and successfully shut down nine fake websites that were created to cheat devotees under the guise of booking accommodations at Shri Mahakaleshwar Bhakt Niwas, an official said on Saturday.

The crackdown came following several complaints from devotees who had made online bookings through a fraudulent website, only to realise upon arrival that no such bookings had been made and that they had been duped. Police launched an investigation and swiftly took action against the fake websites.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Pradeep Sharma told ANI, 'We are constantly monitoring all the arrangements related to Shri Mahakal Temple, whether it is government or non-government. Some complaints were received regarding the Mahakaleshwar Bhakt Niwas, that people who made online payments suffered fraud. After that, we contacted the IT department of Bhakt Niwas and informed them about how their website can be redesigned so that people should not be cheated, and we are constantly monitoring the situation.'

'Additionally, we have made nine fake websites by contacting those who provided the domains of those fake websites. Also, our IT cell has reported the fake profiles of those websites on social media and got those accounts closed. We also informed Facebook and Instagram that their email ID and contacts are fake,' the officer said.

He further appealed to the people to make a booking through the authorised website and immediately informed the police if they came across any fake websites in this regard.

'We are constantly keeping a close eye on the situation, and I appeal to the people that you should book only through the authorised website. If any fake website comes to their notice now, then immediately inform our IT cell, so that the required action can be taken on the matter. We have also written a letter to Google LERS (Law Enforcement Request System) and informed them about their bogus and wrongdoings of the websites,' the officer added. (ANI)