WhatsApp message from ‘boss’? How did Hyderabad firm lose around Rs 1.95 crore

Hyderabad:

‘Send Rs 1.95 crore to this account’, Hyderabad firm’s accounting officer was told through WhatsApp. It seemed from a completely valid source – the chairman and managing director of the company – for a completely valid reason, as advance payment for a new project.

And so the Rs 1.95 crore was duly transferred.

Only, it was not a perfectly valid message.

This message came from MD’s WhatsApp account. His photo was in the display section, but it was actually a fraud, which inspired the officer to move around Rs 2 crore.

Fortunately for the MD and his company (and accounting officer), the Telangana Cyber ​​Security Bureau stopped this ‘high-value cyber fraud’ and recovered the entire amount.

It was obtained before today, the transfer was completed at 1.02 pm.

Soon after, the Actual Managing Director received a bank notification and, wisely concerned, immediately approached his accounting officer.

On being told about the ‘WhatsApp message’, the MD confirmed that it did not make any such request, and the company immediately filed a complaint on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal, or NCRP.

The NCRP then came into action, first to confirm the transaction and then to track the money. It was difficult, initially, because some details were missing.

However, working with the company and MD, and the bank’s nodal officials, the money was eventually located and, miraculously, the entire Rs 1.95 crore was recovered.

Fortunately criminals had not yet withdrawn any cash.

It is far from such an example before cyber crime. A large number of men and women, including private individuals and companies, have been excluded from the hard-earned money earned by fake messages and calls, inspiring the government to be careful repeatedly.

Last week, for example, even in Hyderabad, fraudsters stole a woman from a woman on the pretext of investing in the stock market through some mobile apps. And it is not that famous celebrities are spared. For example, earlier this month, an influential social media person Akanka Tharal lost Rs 1.1 lakh after replying to an Axis Bank officer to reply to the phone call.

In December last year, the National Cyber ​​Crime Coordination Center (I4C), a unit within the Union Home Ministry, identified and blocked around 60,000 WhatsApp accounts used for fraud.

Junior Home Minister Sanjay Bandi told the Lok Sabha that complaints worth more than 9.94 lakh were filed with civil financial cyber fraud reporting and management system.

He said that more than Rs 3,431 crore was saved.

To help combat this problem, the i4C has a dedicated helpline – 1930 – to help citizens who have been cheated by cyber criminal.

Meanwhile, Telangana officials have also released a list of dos and dons to the public.

• WhatsApp, email or phone call should be cautious with money transfer requests, even if they come from senior officials.
• Always verify the payment requests directly through formal channels before transacting.
• If you suspect fraud, report it immediately, either through the 1930 helpline or to increase the possibility of recovering your money on www.cybercrime.gov.in.