Pune: Man Loses Rs 23 Lakh to Cybercrooks After Clicking Link

Koregaon Park, 10th January 2025: A manager from Koregaon Park fell victim to a cyber scam, losing Rs 23 lakh after he clicked on a link embedded in a text message, police said. The incident occurred between December 6 and 8, 2024, when the victim, employed at a private company, received the fraudulent message on his mobile phone.

Cybercrime police inspector Swapnali Shinde explained, “As soon as the victim clicked on the link, the cybercriminals gained remote access to his cellphone. They then deactivated his SIM card from a distance, cutting off his communication.”

The fraudsters didn’t stop there. “Using another SIM card and exploiting the victim’s mobile banking access, the crooks managed to secure a loan of Rs 23 lakh by exploiting his bank credentials and credit card details,” Inspector Shinde added.

The victim, who was unaware of the theft at first, only realized the extent of the fraud after his phone stopped working for two days. He did not receive any messages or calls related to loan verification or processing during this period.

Koregaon Park police revealed, “It is suspected that after taking control of the victim’s original SIM card, the suspects used a cloned SIM card to process the loan and misuse his credit card.”

The victim filed a formal complaint on Wednesday, after which the police registered the case. The investigation is now focused on identifying the bank accounts where the fraudulently obtained loan money was transferred.

“As of now, we have not determined the exact cellphone used to activate the cloned SIM card,” the police added.

Authorities are continuing to investigate the matter, tracing the money trail and working to identify the criminals behind the cyber fraud.

Police have urged people to be cautious while clicking on unknown links or sharing personal banking information.