Head of private firm loses ₹72 lakh after being lured into putting SIM in free mobile phone in Bengaluru
The Hindu
The problem began when he got a call from a man promising a free credit card from a leading private bank.
A 56-year-old head of a private firm lost ₹72 lakh to cyber criminals who promised a free credit card from a leading private bank. The man lost ₹72 lakh after inserting his SIM card into a new mobile phone that he got from the bank as a gift.
Based on his complaint, the South Division Cyber Crime police have registered a case under the IT Act, 2000, and also for impersonation and cheating.
The complaint is Basavaraju G.E., a resident of Bikasipura in south Bengaluru. According to his complaint, Basavaraju received a call from a person claiming to be an executive of a leading private bank and offering a free lifetime credit card based on his bank transactions and CIBIL score.
Initially, Basavaraju agreed to take up the offer, but later refused when the caller sought personal details and mobile phone authentication. However the caller persuaded him by offering a complimentary mobile phone and instructed him to insert his SIM card into the new phone for authentication.
A few hours later, Basavaraju received a brand new phone through a courier. He then followed the instruction of the caller, and inserted his SIM card in the new phone.
Within minutes, ₹66,10,421 was debited from his savings bank account, along with ₹5,96,044 from his credit card, totalling ₹72 Lakh.
Basavaraju tried to call the executive, but the number was out of reach.