Woman cheated of 15 lakhs by posing as fake SBI officer, don't make such mistake
Scam Alert: Recently, a 43-year-old woman from Manikonda, Hyderabad was cheated of about Rs 15 lakh. The fraudsters cheated the woman by posing as SBI Securities officers.
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There has been a significant increase in online fraud cases in recent months, with fraudsters stealing money from people by luring them with high returns. These fraudsters are attracting unsuspecting people by creating fake groups on messaging platforms such as WhatsApp and teaching them how to make more money through investment. Many people have fallen victim to these scams, losing their deposited funds. A 43-year-old woman from Manikonda in Hyderabad was recently defrauded of approximately Rs 15 lakh. The fraudsters defrauded the woman by impersonating SBI Securities employees.
According to the Times of India report, the victim received a message on WhatsApp in August, advertising 'SBI Securities International Account'. Seeing the name of SBI, the victim showed interest and was added to a WhatsApp group named 'SBI Securities Group'.
The fraudsters, posing as SBI officials, asked her to download an app called 'SBI-INT', which was presented as an official SBI trading platform. Through the app, the fraudsters made the woman invest in IPOs, upper circuit stocks and block trades promising high returns. The victim initially invested a small amount and then seeing the possibility of profit, she invested more money and gradually transferred multiple deposits to the wallet of the app.
However, when the victim tried to withdraw her profit and initial investment amount, the fraudsters asked her to pay Rs 22 lakh more in the name of 'tax'. The victim then came to her senses. By then, she had lost about Rs 15 lakh and got back only a meagre amount of Rs 25,000. Following this, a case has been registered with the Cyberabad Cyber Crime Police and officials have started investigating the incident.
People are being advised to check if such unsolicited investment is genuine in order to avoid fraud. Especially when unusually high returns are promised, verify their authenticity. Check the authenticity of any contact and any platform used to contact one. Do not download any unknown app.
