Mangaluru: A 71-year-old senior citizen from Mangaluru has fallen victim to an online fraud after cyber criminals allegedly duped him of ₹6,82,082 by luring him into downloading a fake mobile application in the name of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the Voters List.
A case has been registered at the Mangalore East (Kadri) Police Station against unidentified cyber fraudsters.
Fake voter verification message traps victim
According to the complaint, the victim received a message on July 17 claiming there was a mismatch in his voter verification details under the SIR process. The message instructed him to contact a mobile number for assistance.
Believing the message to be genuine, the complainant contacted the number via WhatsApp on July 18 and was informed that he would receive a response within 48 hours.
On July 20, he received another WhatsApp message containing a link purportedly for voter verification. A person then contacted him through WhatsApp, claiming that his voter registration details needed to be updated. The fraudster allegedly collected the victim’s personal and document details on the pretext of completing the verification process.
APK file used to hack mobile phone
The fraudster initially asked the victim to pay a ₹5 verification fee through the link. When the payment failed, the accused sent an APK file via WhatsApp and instructed him to download it.
Soon after installing the application, the victim’s mobile phone automatically switched off.
When he checked his HDFC Bank account the following morning, he discovered that ₹6,82,082 had been fraudulently withdrawn through multiple transactions carried out between July 20 and 21.
Police have registered a case and launched an investigation to trace those behind the cyber fraud.
Authorities have advised the public not to install APK files received through WhatsApp or unknown sources and to verify any voter-related communication only through official government websites or authorised election officials