BENGALURU : In the era of social media-driven charity, the exchange of scanners and Unified Payments Interface (UPI) IDs has reshaped acts of generosity.
As people share their UPI IDs and bank details online, seeking and paying donations, they inadvertently expose themselves to manipulation by fraudsters, who exploit the charitable spirit and gather sensitive data like KYC details.
A Central Crime Branch (CCB) police officer explained that people seeking donations often share their bank details online, assuming they are secure. However, these seemingly innocuous details are exploited by fraudsters, who maliciously try to connect the details with Aadhaar card information.
In a few schemes, perpetrators even resort to SIM swapping to gain unauthorized access into the victim’s phone when they share their number linked with UPI, while seeking donations and transaction IDs to pay amounts. With this information, the fraudsters create fake UPI accounts, exploiting the multiple layers of personal data in no time, and attack the victims with phishing messages that appear genuine, coercing them indirectly to pay the donation amount.
CK Baba, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South-East division) said in scenarios involving donations, charity, and sudden emergencies including medical treatment, fees for educational institutes hit a sensitive chord for victims. Frequently, people, driven by urgency and empathy, overlook the crucial step of verifying details and make them susceptible to fraudulent schemes.
In such cases, it does not affect whether the amount is substantial or trivial but the act of sharing screenshots with unmasked UPI IDs and unsecured data transcripts is sufficient to pose a significant threat. This jeopardizes data security and stresses the critical need for people to thoroughly validate bank details.