#FactCheck: Viral video of Unrest in Kenya is being falsely linked with J&K

Executive Summary:

The internet is a nest of scams and there's much need to be careful with predatory ideas that prey on the naïve people. Within the recent days, a malicious campaign has emerged falsely alleging 28 day free recharge by courtesy of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This blog seeks to analyze the tactics used by this scam in luring the victims and give an overview on how one can identify and keep away from such fraudulent activities.

Claim:

In view of the increasing support for the BJP 2024 election, a rumor has allegedly claimed that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi offering a free recharge with a validity period of up-to twenty eight days at cost of ₹239  to all Indian users. The message encourages the users to click on a given link in order to redeem the free recharge, pointing out that this offer is valid until January 26th of 2024.

The Deceptive Journey:

• Insecure Links:The research begins with a suspicious link (http://offerintro[.]com/BJP2024), without any credibility that honest sites use to protect the user information. We should keep in mind that the links which aren’t secure may easily lead to phishing and other  cyber threats.
• Multiple Redirects:When users click the link, they are immediately directed through a series of links. This common tactic used by scammers is designed to hide the true origin of their fraudulent scheme, making it difficult for users' efforts to identify the malicious activity.
• False Promises and Fake Comments:The landing page has a banner of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi that makes it look like this is an official channel and hence authentic. Further, false comments can be also included to compliment the alleged initiative. But remember that genuine government announcements are made through legal channels, not by the shady websites.
• Mobile Number Request:As the next step, the users enter their mobile numbers in the specified field. True initiatives never really need the personal information to pass through unofficial lines. This is actually a trick that scammers use to acquire the important information.
• Share to Activate:Once a user has entered the mobile number, he/she is prompted to share the link with others in order to “activate” promised free recharge. This method is most often used by scammers for spreading their fraudulent message beyond the targeted victim.
• Fake Progress Display:When the users have done their part by sharing the link, a false recharge in progress  bar is shown to make them believe that it has started. But the consumers are unwittingly playing a part in the fraud.
• Recharge Completion Pop-up:The last stage of fraud includes a pop-up saying that the recharge is done; leaving users with the false belief that they have benefited from a legitimate government initiative.

What we Analyze :

• It is important to note that at this particular point, there has not been any official declaration or a proper confirmation of an offer made by the Prime Minister or from their government. So, people must be very careful when encountering such messages because they are often employed as lures in phishing attacks or misinformation campaigns. Before engaging or transmitting such claims, it is always advisable to authenticate the information from trustworthy sources in order to protect oneself online and prevent the spread of wrongful information.
• The campaign is hosted on a third party domain instead of any official Government Website, this raised suspicion. Also the domain has been registered in very recent times.

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• Domain Name: offerintro[.]com
• Registry Domain ID: 2791466714_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
• Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.godaddy[.]com
• Registrar URL: https://www.godaddy[.]com
• ‍Registrar: GoDaddy[.]com, LLC
• Registrar IANA ID: 146
• Updated Date: 2023-06-18T20:37:20Z
• Creation Date: 2023-06-18T20:37:20Z
• Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2024-06-18T20:37:20Z
• Name Server: ANAHI.NS.CLOUDFLARE.COM
• Name Server: GARRETT.NS.CLOUDFLARE.COM

CyberPeace Advisory:

• Stay Informed: Beware of the scams and keep yourself updated through authentic government platforms.
• Verify Website Security: Do not get engaged with any insecure HTTP links but focus on URLs that have secure encryption (HTTPS).
• Protect Personal Information: However, be cautious when sharing personal information – especially in a non-official channel.
• Report Suspicious Activity: If you discover any scams or fraudulent activities, report it and the relevant sites to help avoid others from being defrauded of their hard earned money.

Conclusion:

Summing up, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Free Recharge fraud is an excellent illustration that there is always some danger within cyberspace. The way of the method, from insecure links and also multiple redirects to false promises and really data collection make it clear that internet users should be more careful. The importance of staying up-to-date with what is happening in this new digital world, verifying credibility and also privacy are paramount. By being cautiously aware, the people can keep themselves safe from such fraudulent acts and also play a role in ensuring security even for an online world. Remember that an offer which is in a perfect world should be illegal. Therefore, after doing a thorough research we found this campaign to be fake.

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Introduction

In an era where organisations are increasingly interdependent through global supply chains, outsourcing and digital ecosystems, third-party risk has become one of the most vital aspects of enterprise risk management. The SolarWinds hack, the MOVEit vulnerabilities and recent software vendor attacks all serve as a reminder of the necessity to enhance Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM). As cyber risks evolve and become more sophisticated and as regulatory oversight sharpens globally, 2025 is a transformative year for the development of TPRM practices. This blog explores the top trends redefining TPRM in 2025, encompassing real-time risk scoring, AI-driven due diligence, harmonisation of regulations, integration of ESG, and a shift towards continuous monitoring. All of these trends signal a larger movement towards resilience, openness and anticipatory defence in an increasingly dependent world.

Real-Time and Continuous Monitoring becomes the Norm

The old TPRM methods entailed point-in-time testing, which typically was an annual or onboarding process. By 2025, organisations are shifting towards continuous, real-time monitoring of their third-party ecosystems. Now, authentic advanced tools are making it possible for companies to take a real-time pulse of the security of their vendors by monitoring threat indicators, patching practices and digital footprint variations. This change has been further spurred by the growth in cyber supply chain attacks, where the attackers target vendors to gain access to bigger organisations. Real-time monitoring software enables the timely detection of malicious activity, equipping organisations with a faster defence response. It also guarantees dynamic risk rating instead of relying on outdated questionnaire-based scoring.

AI and Automation in Risk Assessment and Due Diligence

Manual TPRM processes aren't sustainable anymore. In 2025, AI and machine learning are reshaping the TPRM lifecycle from onboarding and risk classification to contract review and incident handling. AI technology can now analyse massive amounts of vendor documentation and automatically raise red flags on potential issues. Natural language processing (NLP) is becoming more common for automated contract intelligence, which assists in the detection of risky clauses or liability gaps or data protection obligations. In addition, automation is increasing scalability for large organisations that have hundreds or thousands of third-party relationships, eliminating human errors and compliance fatigue. However, all of this must be implemented with a strong focus on security, transparency, and ethical AI use to ensure that sensitive vendor and organisational data remains protected throughout the process.

Risk Quantification and Business Impact Mapping

Risk scoring in isolation is no longer adequate. One of the major trends for 2025 is the merging of third-party risk with business impact analysis (BIA). Organisations are using tools that associate vendors to particular business processes and assets, allowing better knowledge of how a compromise of a vendor would impact operations, customer information or financial position. This movement has resulted in increased use of risk quantification models, such as FAIR (Factor Analysis of Information Risk), which puts dollar values on risks associated with vendors. By using the language of business value, CISOs and risk officers are more effective at prioritising risks and making resource allocations.

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) enters into TPRM

As ESG keeps growing on the corporate agenda, organisations are taking TPRM one step further than cybersecurity and legal risks and expanding it to incorporate ESG-related factors. In 2025, organisations evaluate if their suppliers have ethical labour practices, sustainable supply chains, DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) metrics and climate impact disclosures. This growth is not only a reputational concern, but also a third-party non-compliance with ESG can now invoke regulatory or shareholder action. ESG risk scoring software and vendor ESG audits are becoming components of onboarding and performance evaluations.

Shared Assessments and Third-Party Exchanges

With the duplication of effort by having multiple vendors respond to the same security questionnaires, the trend is moving toward shared assessments. Systems such as the SIG Questionnaire (Standardised Information Gathering) and the Global Vendor Exchange allow vendors to upload once and share with many clients. This change not only simplifies the due diligence process but also enhances data accuracy, standardisation and vendor experience. In 2025, organisations are relying more and more on industry-wide vendor assurance platforms to minimise duplication, decrease costs and maximise trust.

Incident Response and Resilience Partnerships

Another trend on the rise is bringing vendors into incident response planning. In 2025, proactive organisations address major vendors as more than suppliers but as resilience partners. This encompasses shared tabletop exercises, communication procedures and breach notification SLAs. With the increasing ransomware attacks and cloud reliance, organisations are now calling for vendor-side recovery plans, RTO and RPO metrics. TPRM is transforming into a comprehensive resilience management function where readiness and not mere compliance takes centre stage.

Conclusion

Third-Party Risk Management in 2025 is no longer about checklists and compliance audits; it's a dynamic, intelligence-driven and continuous process. With regulatory alignment, AI automation, real-time monitoring, ESG integration and resilience partnerships leading the way, organisations are transforming their TPRM programs to address contemporary threat landscapes. As digital ecosystems grow increasingly complex and interdependent, managing third-party risk is now essential. Early adopters who invest in tools, talent and governance will be more likely to create secure and resilient businesses for the AI era.

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References

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‍- https://finance.ec.europa.eu/publications/digital-operational-resilience-act-dora_en

- https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/nis2-directive

- https://www.meity.gov.in/data-protection-framework

- https://securityscorecard.com

- https://sharedassessments.org/sig/

- https://www.fairinstitute.org/fair-model 

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Introduction

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is a process through which one can improve website visibility on search engine platforms like Google, Microsoft Bing, etc. There is an implicit understanding that SEO suggestions or the links that are generated on top are the more popular information sources and, hence, are deemed to be more trustworthy. This trust, however, is being misused by threat actors through a process called SEO poisoning.

SEO poisoning is a method used by threat actors to attack and obtain information about the user by using manipulative methods that position their desired link, web page, etc to appear at the top of the search engine algorithm. The end goal is to lure the user into clicking and downloading their malware, presented in the garb of legitimate marketing or even as a valid result for Google search.

An active example of attempts at SEO poisoning has been discussed in a report by the Hindustan Times on 11th November, 2024. It highlights that using certain keywords could make a user more susceptible to hacking. Hackers are now targeting people who enter specific words or specific combinations in search engines. According to the report, users who looked up and clicked on links at the top related to the search query “Are Bengal cats legal in Australia?” had details regarding their personal information posted online soon after.

SEO Poisoning - Modus Operandi Of Attack

There are certain tactics that are used by the attackers on SEO poisoning, these are:

• Keyword stuffing- This method involves overloading a webpage with irrelevant words, which helps the false website appear higher in ranking.
• Typosquatting- This method involves creating domain names or links similar to the more popular and trusted websites. A lack of scrutiny before clicking would lead the user to download malware, from what they thought was a legitimate site.
• Cloaking- This method operates by showing different content to both the search engines and the user. While the search engine sees what it assumes to be a legitimate website, the user is exposed to harmful content.
• Private Link Networks- Threat actors create a group of unrelated websites in order to increase the number of referral links, which enables them to rank higher on search engine platforms.
• Article Spinning- This method involves imitating content from other pre-existing, legitimate websites, while making a few minor changes, giving the impression to search engine crawlers of it being original content.
• Sneaky Redirect- This method redirects the users to malicious websites (without their knowledge) instead of the ones the user had intended to click.

CyberPeace Recommendations

• Employee Security Awareness Training: Security awareness training can help employees familiarise themselves with tactics of SEO poisoning, encouraging them to either spot such inconsistencies early on or even alert the security team at the earliest. 
• Tool usage: Companies can use Digital Risk Monitoring tools to catch instances of typosquatting. Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tools also help keep an eye on client history and assess user activities during security breaches to figure out the source of the affected file.
• Internal Security Measures: To refer to lists of Indicators of Compromise (IOC). IOC has URL lists that show evidence of the strange behaviour of websites, and this can be used to practice caution. Deploying Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) to mitigate and detect malicious traffic is helpful.

Conclusion

The nature of SEO poisoning is such that it inherently promotes the spread of misinformation, and facilitates cyberattacks. Misinformation regarding the legitimacy of the links and the content they display, in order to lure users into clicking on them, puts personal information under threat. As people trust their favoured search engines, and there is a lack of awareness of such tactics in use, one must exercise caution while clicking on links that seem to be popular, despite them being hosted by trusted search engines.

References

• https://www.checkpoint.com/cyber-hub/cyber-security/what-is-cyber-attack/what-is-seo-poisoning/
• https://www.vectra.ai/topics/seo-poisoning
• https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/search-poisoning
• https://www.blackberry.com/us/en/solutions/endpoint-security/ransomware-protection/seo-poisoning
• https://www.coalitioninc.com/blog/seo-poisoning-attacks
• https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0160791X24000186
• https://www.repindia.com/blog/secure-your-organisation-from-seo-poisoning-and-malvertising-threats/ 
• https://www.hindustantimes.com/technology/typing-these-6-words-on-google-could-make-you-a-target-for-hackers-101731286153415.html

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