Hyderabad: With Diwali just a few days away, the city’s cybercrime police have warned online users to be on their guard against fraudsters offering heavy discounts and lucrative gifts as a ploy to dupe people.A 29-year-old woman from Secunderabad was lured by a phone call informing her that she was one of five customers eligible for a special gift offer based on her previous purchases. She was asked to make a purchase worth Rs 5,000. Instead of paying via an official website, the fraudster asked the victim to make the payment to a particular bank account. She was then asked to pay an additional Rs 9,840 in GST charges to cover the dispatch of an iPhone 13 as a gift. Misled by repeated calls, she transferred a total of Rs 1.40 lakh, according to the cybercrime police.Officials said that fraudsters are sharing fake payment gateways or festive offer pages that are embedded with malicious links in order to illegally access banking details. They circulate unauthorised mobile applications (APKs) and fake websites that mimic genuine e-commerce platforms through gift offers and lucky draw messages.“Do not install apps or click on links received from unverified sources. Always shop only from trusted and verified e-commerce websites. Never share your banking or card information on unfamiliar links or portals. Do not respond to messages or calls offering gifts, rewards or lucky draws. Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) on all online banking and shopping accounts,” police advised.
