A retired IT professional who has been creating awareness about cyber fraud threats for years was himself allegedly duped of around Rs 2.5 lakh by cybercriminals. “I was under tremendous stress that day due to a personal urgency, and the fraudsters targeted me in the exact timeframe when I was expecting a similar call,” explained the complainant, a Santacruz resident. “The balance in the account was a small amount, so I was not worried initially. But I realised later that the fraudsters had managed to get an instant loan issued on my account, duping me of a much larger amount,” he added.

The fraudsters used most of the defrauded amount to pay credit card bills. Representation Pic/iStock