Thane, Aug 28 (PTI) Two men in their 70s from Thane collectively lost more than Rs 15.73 lakh from their bank accounts in separate cases of cyber fraud when impostors claiming to be poll officials contacted them under the pretext of rectifying “errors” in their voter records, police said on Friday.
FIRs were registered at Chitalsar police station, and an investigation was launched, officials said.
In the first incident on August 18, a 71-year-old man received a call from an individual claiming to represent the Election Commission of India. Citing an “error” in the complainant’s father’s name, the scammer directed the elderly man to download an “Online Voter Verification” APK file via WhatsApp.
Upon installation, the malicious file compromised the victim’s mobile device, allowing fraudsters to siphon off Rs 8.89 lakh, police said.
A similar fraud targeted a 75-year-old man on August 19 when a fraudster, posing as a representative of the Election Commission, contacted the senior citizen and convinced him to send Rs 5 via net banking to “correct his father’s name” in official records. The complainant lost Rs 6.84 lakh during the transaction, police said.
Police have booked unidentified accused under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for cheating and impersonation and under the Information Technology Act.
Nobody has been arrested so far, police said. PTI COR NSK
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.