Ahmedabad Businessman Loses ₹43.57 Lakh After Hackers Breach NilkanthPay Server
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
A 38-year-old businessman from Ahmedabad's New Naroda lost ₹43.57 lakh after cyber fraudsters hacked his company's server cPanel, stole API credentials and siphoned money from its digital wallet through more than 80 transactions.
The hackers allegedly compromised the server of NilkanthPay, an online payment application used by around 250 retailers, and transferred the money to multiple bank accounts within just three hours and 15 minutes on September 26, 2026.
The Cyber Crime Police have registered a case against unidentified hackers and the holders of the bank accounts allegedly used in the fraud under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Information Technology Act. An investigation is underway.
Hackers Steal API Credentials After Breaching Server
According to the complaint, Manishbhai Parsottambhai Savaliya, 38, a resident of Laxminarayan Society near Kavya Residency in New Naroda, operates Nilkanth Communication from Ambika Complex near Vijay Park on National Highway No. 8.
His company provides online services such as money transfers, mobile recharges, electricity bill payments and FASTag transactions through its NilkanthPay application, which is used by approximately 250 retailers.
Savaliya had purchased the application from a developer named Lakshmansinh, who also held the login credentials for the server's cPanel. The company used API-based money transfer services provided by AENA Enterprise, a firm based in Surat's Varachha area, through API.Kiaraservices.in.
According to the complaint, the hackers breached the server's cPanel and obtained the API ID and password, which they allegedly used to access the digital wallet and initiate unauthorised transactions.
More Than 80 Transactions in 3 Hours and 15 Minutes
The fraudsters allegedly siphoned off ₹43.57 lakh between 12.30 pm and 3.45 pm on September 26.
To avoid exceeding the API transaction limits, they transferred individual amounts ranging from ₹25,000 to ₹49,999 into multiple bank accounts.
The accounts included those held with Fino Payments Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Union Bank, Axis Bank and Canara Bank. More than 80 transactions were executed during the 195-minute period to move the stolen funds.
Failed Transactions Expose the Fraud
The fraud came to light when a customer, Deepakbhai Fibyani, contacted Savaliya on the evening of September 26 and complained that transactions through the application were failing.
When Savaliya checked the digital wallet, he discovered that a substantial amount had been deducted.
He then contacted the application's developer, Lakshmansinh, who informed him that the server's cPanel had been hacked and the API credentials stolen. The stolen credentials had allegedly been used to transfer money illegally into various bank accounts.
Savaliya subsequently approached the Cyber Crime authorities after initially reporting the incident through the national cybercrime helpline 1930.
The Cyber Crime Police have registered a complaint and begun investigating the server breach, the unauthorised API transactions and the bank accounts that received the money.
