Tarun Karthick
Sri Vijaya Puram, 20 August 2025
A resident of Wimberlygunj misplaced ₹70,000 after being tricked into downloading a fraudulent cell utility whereas making an attempt to cancel a wrongly booked flight ticket.
According to the FIR lodged on the Cyber Crime Police Station, the incident occurred on May 30, 2025, when the sufferer mistakenly booked a flight ticket for the mistaken date. In search of a refund, he got here throughout a YouTube commercial video that provided steering on flight ticket cancellations.
The video displayed a cell quantity, which the sufferer dialled. He was then redirected to a different WhatsApp quantity, the place unknown individual(s) started instructing him on safe the refund. As a part of their directions, they requested him to obtain and set up an APK, offered as crucial for processing the cancellation and refund.
APK (Android Package Kit) is the file format used to put in purposes on Android gadgets. While official apps are downloaded from trusted sources such because the Google Play Store, cyber fraudsters typically create malicious APKs and share them by hyperlinks or private messages. Once put in, these pretend apps can entry delicate information, together with banking info and passwords, resulting in monetary theft.
Trusting their steering, the Wimberlygunj resident put in the app and entered his SBI card particulars, UPI credentials, and even his UPI PIN. Soon after, his cellphone appeared compromised, and a number of unauthorized UPI transactions occurred — ₹50,000 in a single switch and two extra of ₹10,000 every — debiting a complete of ₹70,000 from his checking account. Notably, the transactions had been carried out with out requiring any OTP.
On May 31, 2025, the sufferer reported the matter on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal. Following his criticism, the Cyber Crime Police registered a case underneath Sections 318(4) and 319(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023 on 14th August 2025.
