What began as a payment error at a toll gate turned into a financial scam for a 42-year-old private employee from Hyderabad, who ended up losing over ₹2.28 lakh to an online fraudster posing as a representative of Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
The victim was en route to Karnataka to attend his mother’s funeral and booked a cab for ₹11,000. After paying ₹4,000 for fuel, he agreed to pay the remaining ₹7,000 upon arrival. However, at a toll gate, he mistakenly scanned a QR code linked to SBI FASTAG NETC, intending to pay the driver but instead it was an unrelated payment.
Alarmed, he reported the issue to Canara Bank’s Emmiganuru branch, which acknowledged the complaint and advised him to contact UPI officials. Searching online for help, the victim found a phone number claiming to be from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). Trusting the source, he called it, unaware that it was part of an elaborate scam.
The man on the other end, claiming to be a UPI support agent, instructed him to lodge a complaint and promised a swift refund. To facilitate the refund, the fraudster convinced the victim to transfer money using the PhonePe app, claiming the amount would be instantly returned. He was then told the transaction was “on hold” and asked to send more funds to complete the process.
Misled and desperate to recover his money, the victim followed further instructions, including opening his Canara Bank mobile app, increasing his credit limit, and sharing sensitive ATM and OTP details. The fraudster used this information to siphon off the remaining funds. Despite repeated follow-ups and assurances of a full refund within five minutes, the victim received no money. The fraudster eventually became unreachable.
The victim lodged an online complaint on cybercrime portal. The case is under investigation.
Published - April 24, 2025 08:40 pm IST
