Bengaluru: A 57-year-old woman from CV Raman Nagar has fallen victim to an elaborate online scam after being misled by a deepfake video of spiritual leader Sadhguru promoting a stock-trading platform. Believing the reel to be genuine, she invested heavily between February 25 and April 23, ultimately losing Rs 3.75 crore to fraudsters.
How the fraud began
According to her complaint, Sneha (name changed) came across a reel on social media featuring what appeared to be Sadhguru endorsing investments starting at just $250. Unaware of the growing menace of deepfake videos, she clicked on the link provided in the reel. The page that opened sought her personal details, following which she was contacted by a man named Waleed B, who introduced himself as a representative of a firm called Mirrox.
The trap set by fraudsters
Waleed, who reached out from multiple UK-based numbers, added Sneha to a WhatsApp group with around 100 members. The group was designed to build trust, with participants regularly sharing screenshots of supposed profits and credited returns. She was also directed to email addresses such as info@mirrox.com and support@mirrox.com, and instructed to download the Mirrox app.
Through Zoom sessions, Waleed and another tutor named Michael C guided Sneha on how to trade, gradually convincing her to transfer money to bank accounts they provided. By April 23, she had made multiple transfers totalling Rs 3.75 crore.
The moment of suspicion
Initially, the platform reflected large notional profits, furthering her belief in the scheme. But when she attempted to withdraw her money, the fraudsters demanded additional payments in the form of processing fees and taxes. Sensing irregularities, she refused further transactions. The group then stopped responding to her messages.
Police response
A senior police officer confirmed that Sneha had transferred the money in several instalments. However, since she filed the complaint nearly five months after the fraud, recovery would be extremely difficult. “We are coordinating with the bank to freeze the fraudsters’ accounts,” the officer said.
Wider implications
The case comes amid a surge in online frauds leveraging deepfake technology. In June, Sadhguru himself approached the Delhi High Court to protect his personality rights against the unauthorised use of AI-generated content. The incident highlights both the sophistication of scams and the urgent need for awareness campaigns to help people identify and avoid deepfake-driven traps.
Conclusion
Authorities have urged citizens to verify any financial scheme before investing, especially those linked to celebrity endorsements on social media. With AI-generated deepfakes on the rise, the Bengaluru case serves as a cautionary tale of how misplaced trust can lead to devastating financial losses.