Man loses ₹4 lakh in IRCTC ticket scam; Know how to stay safe
A 78-year-old man, M. Mohammed Basheer of Kozhikode Vandipetta, attempted to cancel an IRCTC ticket, but fell prey to a cunning scam, resulting in a loss of ₹4 lakhs. Basheer unknowingly accessed a fake website where a person posing as a railway employee reached out to him.
This imposter communicated with Basheer in both English and Hindi, guiding him to perform actions on his device, leading to the appearance of a blue emblem on his screen, which indicated the device was now under the scammer's control. Basheer, following the instructions, provided his bank account details and ATM card number, opening the door to further exploitation.
The scam may have involvedmalware installation on Basheer's device, allowing the scammer remote access or other software that allow remote control of devices. Keyloggers could have captured sensitive information, while spyware may have discreetly tracked his actions and collected data. Basheer's realization of the scam occurred when he received a message notifying him of money being withdrawn from his savings account.
Throughout the ordeal, the scammers maintained contact with Basheer via three distinct phone numbers. His attempts to reach out to the bank were thwarted, leaving him helpless. As a countermeasure, Basheer wiped his phone to forestall further data breaches and reported the incident to both the bank and the police's cyber cell.
An investigation by the police's cyber cell unearthed that the fraudulent app 'Rest Desk' facilitated the scammers' access to Basheer's phone. In a series of transactions, ₹4,05,919 was debited from Kolkata. The phone numbers linked to the scammers have raised suspicions of connections to individuals from Bengal and Bihar.
Basheer, a former Senior Engineer
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