Cyber Fraud Through Instagram Ad: Family Loses Rs 98,000 In Minutes

Cyber fraudsters are constantly coming up with new ways to trick people and steal their money. Recently, a routine evening of social media scrolling turned into a nightmare for a family in Gwalior. A single click on an Instagram account led to a sophisticated cyber fraud that left their mobile device frozen, and meanwhile, fraudsters withdrew Rs 98,000, leaving their bank account nearly empty.    

The incident took place on August 11, when the wife was using Instagram on her mobile phone. An advertisement appeared on her screen. Finding it interesting, she clicked on it to seek more information. However, the phone immediately went off, and it became unresponsive. The device froze, and no function worked on it.

The family found it impossible even to turn the phone off. To get the mobile phone fixed, they took it to a mobile shop near their place, where a shopkeeper eventually managed to shut it down and restart it. At the time, the family had no suspicion that their bank account was at risk, and it could be a trick by fraudsters.  

They discovered that it was a fraud only when the husband received a bank account message at night regarding an instalment. When he checked the balance, he was shocked to see a negative balance of Rs 2,970 in his account. According to a report by India Today, the family had nearly Rs 1 lakh in the account before the incident, and all that amount had vanished from their account after the incident.  

When the husband confirmed with his wife that she had not authorised any transfers, he informed the national cybercrime helpline at 1930 to report the suspected fraud.

The next day, they visited their bank to find out more information about the transaction. The bank account statement confirmed that Rs 98,000 had been siphoned off from their account through three separate UPI transactions. Confirming that it was an incident of fraud, the victim approached the police on August 16 to file a formal complaint. The police have since registered a case and reportedly handed over the investigation to the specialised cyber cell.  

Investigators are examining the technical aspects of the breach, while local authorities are also investigating the possible tactic. They are working to establish exactly how the fraud occurred. How the fraud was executed when the Instagram advertisement was clicked, and the mechanism used by the fraudsters to get access to the victims’ bank accounts.

While experts suggest that one must not click on suspicious links and never share personal information, bank account details, OTPs, PINs, etc., this incident brings the digital and financial security of users into question again, where clicking on an advertisement on social media could result in a cyber trap.