Cheat duped techie after promising relief from PM CARES Fund [Representative image] | Photo Credit: Getty Images

Key Highlights The fraudster told the victim that the Central government has launched a scheme under which every citizen would get Rs 1,000 from PM CARES Fund The techie told the caller that she was not aware about any such scheme, but somehow he managed to convince her about it being authentic The fraudster sent her a link via text message and asked her to follow the instructions

Mumbai: Criminals are prowling in the cyberspace and are leveraging the virus pandemic to con people by using it as a lure. In a treacherous incident reported from Maharashtra’s Navi Mumbai where a 25-year-old software professional was allegedly duped of Rs 30,000 by a cyber fraudster after being promised a sum of Rs 1,000 to be transferred to her bank account from Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund.

The incident took place within the territorial limits of the New Panvel Police Station. The victim lodged a complaint with police and on the basis of her complaint, an FIR was registered against the unidentified fraudster under relevant sections of the Information Technology Act and Indian Penal Code. An investigation has been launched.

According to a report of the Mumbai Mirror, on Monday, the victim received a call from a person, who posed to be an employee of a nationalized bank. The caller told her that the Central government has launched a scheme under which Rs 1,000 would be given to every citizen from the PM CARES Fund. He asked her to share her bank details so that the amount could be transferred to her account.

Techie believes fraudster

Initially, the techie told the caller that she was not aware of any such scheme, but somehow he managed to convince her about it being authentic. The fraudster told her that a link would be sent to her via text message and she would have to follow the instructions for getting the monetary relief.

Fraudster's modus operandi

The techie clicked on the link and it redirected her to a mobile wallet application used by her. Upon entering the password, a debit transaction of Rs 1,000 took place from her account. She questioned the caller about the deduction and he told her that it would be refunded if she followed the instructions. She received another link and the fraudster asked her to open it. Soon after, she received text messages that another amount of Rs 29,000 had been debited from her account in seven transactions.