Man loses ₹52cr to cyber scam spread over 40 days
A 72-year-old retired pharma employee lost ₹52 crore in a massive cyber scam that played out over 40 days.
Scammers, pretending to be government officials, contacted him on WhatsApp, accused him of money laundering, and threatened to freeze his assets unless he sent money to what they claimed were "government" accounts.
Scammers used fake court calls, VPNs to hide tracks
To make their act convincing, the scammers set up fake court and police calls, even using VPNs to hide their tracks.
The Mumbai Cyber Cell is investigating, but this isn't an isolated case—so-called "digital arrest" scams have nearly tripled recently, with losses crossing ₹1,935 crore this year alone.
Authorities are urging everyone to double-check anyone claiming to be an official before sharing personal or financial info.