Mumbai: Retired Lalbaug banker loses Rs 20 lakh in 90-minute cyber fraud

Illustrations/Uday Mohite

In just 90 minutes, a 67-year-old retired banker from Lalbaug was cheated of Rs 20 lakh, after cyber fraudsters posing as bank officials lured him into a fake KYC verification and account upgrade process, the police said. According to the police, the caller claimed to be a senior officer from the same bank where the victim had worked before retiring as head credit cashier.

The victim found that his mobile phone had been factory reset after the call. REPRESENTATION PIC/ISTOCK

The fraudster informed him about mandatory KYC verification and special senior citizen benefits linked to an account upgrade, following which the victim shared personal details over the prone call and multiple OTPs were generated on his phone. The fraud occurred between 4 pm and 5.30 pm on December 11.

What banks will never ask for...

The fraudster deliberately kept the victim engaged on the phone for a prolonged period and instructed him not to disconnect. This tactic prevented the senior citizen from verifying the claims made by the fraudsters with family members or bank officials

>> OTPs or PINs over a phone call
>> Installation of apps for verification
>> Screen sharing or some form of phone access
>> Confidential details via WhatsApp or SMS

Reporting cyber fraud

The victim's son claimed that the fraudsters gained remote access to his father's mobile phone using malware, through which the OTPs were generated and used without his knowledge. The money was siphoned off through several transactions

Cyber Crime Helpline 1930
Website: cybercrime.gov.in
Report immediately to improve chances of freezing the transaction

Do's
>> Verify any bank-related call by contacting your branch or official bank helpline
>> Report suspicious calls immediately to ‘1930'

The victim allegedly realised what had happened only after the call ended, when he checked his bank account and phone. His mobile phone had been factory reset after the call, wiping out all stored data, including photos, contacts, apps, and SMS messages

Don't
>> Never share OTPs, PINs or passwords; banks do not ask for these
>> Do not install apps or follow instructions given during unsolicited calls