Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi
Udupi, Mar 18: In a shocking case of cyber fraud reported in the city, a 64-year-old woman lost nearly Rs 9.78 lac after fraudsters tricked her husband using a fake gas bill payment scheme.
According to the complaint filed by Mangala Ravidas Nayak, a resident of Shivalli village, the incident occurred on March 17 at around 2:30 pm.
Her husband, Ravidas Raghavendra Nayak, received a call from an unknown person claiming that a gas bill of Rs 20 was pending. The caller insisted that the bill be cleared immediately. Shortly after, a WhatsApp message was sent from the number 8294278381 regarding the pending gas bill, along with an APK file named “Mahanagar Gas Bill Update.apk.”
Unaware of the fraud, Ravidas Nayak downloaded and opened the file. The fraudster then informed him that the payment had not been processed and guided him to make the payment through his bank accounts.
During the process, the accused obtained sensitive banking details including debit card and net banking information of Bandhan Bank and YES Bank, as well as credit card details of HDFC Bank. Using this information, the fraudster transferred a total amount of Rs 9,78,036.50 from the victim’s bank accounts.
Following the complaint, a case has been registered at the Udupi CEN police station.
Police have urged the public to remain cautious and avoid downloading unknown APK files or sharing banking details with strangers.