Ahmedabad: 65-Year-Old Man Loses ₹2.40 Lakh To Fake Pension Card Scam, Phone Hacked Through WhatsApp APK
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
A 65-year-old man from Ahmedabad’s Dariapur area allegedly lost ₹2.40 lakh after a cyber fraudster posing as a Bank of Baroda official tricked him into downloading a fake pension card verification application sent through WhatsApp.
The fraudster allegedly obtained the victim’s M-PIN and T-PIN through the application, after which four transactions drained money from his bank account. The Dariapur police have registered a case against an unidentified person and launched an investigation.
Fraudster Poses As Bank Official, Offers Pension Card
The victim, Gulamnabi Rasulmiya Shaikh, lives near Tambu Chowki in Nagina Pol, Dariapur, and works in wallet manufacturing at Topiwala ni Pol in Kalupur. He holds a bank account with the Dariapur branch of the Bank of Baroda.
According to the complaint, Shaikh received a call from an unknown person at around 9 am on October 13 while he was at home. The caller identified himself as Imran Hussain from the bank’s Mumbai branch and offered to arrange a pension card for him.
During the call, the accused allegedly sent a file named “BOB BANK SENIOR CITIZEN VERIFICATION APK” to Shaikh’s WhatsApp account.
Believing the caller’s claims, Shaikh downloaded the file and granted the application the requested permissions.
M-PIN, T-PIN Allegedly Used To Drain Bank Account
The caller then allegedly instructed Shaikh to enter his name, mobile number, M-PIN and T-PIN into the application.
While Shaikh entered the details, the fraudster kept him engaged on the phone, claiming that the verification process was under way.
Shortly afterwards, ₹2.40 lakh was debited from the victim’s account through four transactions:
Transaction | Amount |
|---|---|
First transaction | ₹1,80,000 |
Second transaction | ₹25,000 |
Third transaction | ₹25,000 |
Fourth transaction | ₹10,000 |
Total amount lost | ₹2,40,000 |
When Shaikh told the caller that he would report the incident to the Cyber Crime Department, the accused allegedly disconnected the call.
Victim Calls Cyber Helpline 1930
After checking the transactions with the bank, Shaikh contacted the national cybercrime helpline at 1930 and subsequently lodged a complaint at the Dariapur police station.
The police have registered a case against an unidentified accused and initiated an investigation into the alleged fraud.
The incident highlights how fake banking applications distributed through messaging platforms can be used to trick victims into sharing sensitive banking credentials.
Cyber safety alert: Do not install APK files received through unsolicited WhatsApp messages or calls claiming to offer banking services. Banks do not require customers to disclose their M-PIN or T-PIN to issue a pension card. Anyone who suspects a cyber fraud should contact 1930 immediately and report the incident through the official National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal.
