Tarun Karthick
Port Blair, 22 February 2024
In a distressing turn of events, a resident of Teylarabad, has fallen victim to an online financial fraud.
In his letter to SP CID, the victim recounts the events leading up to the fraudulent transaction. According to his account, he had purchased a smartwatch from Amazon, which subsequently developed technical issues. Following protocol, he reached out to Amazon’s customer service for resolution. During this process, he inadvertently stumbled upon a fraudulent customer care number while searching on Google for the manufacturer’s contact details.
He contacted the number and his call was transferred to another number.
Subsequently, he received a call from another number, which he later suspected to be associated with the scam. The caller, posing as an Amazon representative, coerced the victim into downloading a suspicious application named “Amazon Complaints.apk” via WhatsApp. Subsequently, the victim was instructed to enter his UPI Pin through Google Pay, a moment of realisation striking him that he might be falling victim to a scam. Sensing danger, he promptly disconnected the call and took precautionary measures, including changing his G-Pay Pin and deleting all bank credentials.
However, the following day, the victim was alarmed to discover an unauthorised transaction of Rs. 50,000 from his wife’s bank account, occurring at 11:17 AM. Despite his immediate efforts to contact Bank’s Toll-Free number for assistance, he encountered difficulties in receiving a prompt response.
Consequently, the victim, accompanied by his wife, approached the Cyber Cell to lodge a formal complaint.
In his plea to the Superintendent of Police (CID), the victim implores for the swift registration of an FIR against the perpetrators of this nefarious act. Furthermore, he beseeches law enforcement authorities to spare no effort in apprehending the fraudsters and recovering the unlawfully obtained funds.