In today’s world, where digital transactions are the standard, online fraud is on the rise. The cunning of scammers is increasing. They employ cunning tactics such as sending phony emails, creating phony websites, and employing covert software to capture passwords and credit card details in order to fool victims and take their money. Recently, a Bengaluru woman named Aditi Chopra revealed a new scamming tactic that is becoming more popular.
Ms. Chopra recounted an event that happened on X, the former Twitter, in which she barely escaped being a victim of a financial fraud that uses SMS to trick gullible people. She described how “an elderly sounding guy” called her while she was in the middle of an office call and said she needed to send money to her father. “Aditi, dear, I needed to send money to your father but he is not available, so he asked me to send it to you,” the man continued in Hindi. Please verify that this is your number, dear.
Citing problems with his personal bank account, he asked Aditi to assist him in getting the money. Ms. Chopra got SMS alerts shortly after the call, which appeared to be proof that she had received money into her account. “While he’s on the call, I received two SMSs: one about a 10k credit and another about a 30k credit,” she wrote on X.
The caller then claimed to have sent ₹30,000 instead of ₹3,000 and told Ms. Chopra of the purported error. “Dear, I accidentally sent INR 30,000 when I shouldve simply sent INR 3,000. Kindly give the additional cash back. He allegedly added, “I need to give the doctor the money; I am standing at his place.”
After closely examining the SMS alerts, Ms. Chopra discovered that they were from a 10-digit phone number rather than a reputable bank. “Of course when I called back in a minute after checking my accounts, I was blocked,” she said, acknowledging that there were warning signs.
“I know my dad, he overexplains everything and triple checks in matters of money, whatever the amount,” the woman continued, adding that “he would have called beforehand and given me more context than needed.”
By saying, “Always check your actual bank account on a separate device and never go by any SMSes,” Ms. Chopra warned others to be cautious of such scams. It’s really easy to game that system.
