Senior citizen outwits conmen using fake credit SMS trick

Time of India

24-06-2025

Vadodara: A senior citizen from Alkapuri in Vadodara narrowly avoided falling victim to a cyber scam after receiving fake SMS alerts claiming money had been credited to her bank account.
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Devika Ramaswami (62), a retired employee of a multinational company, not only recognised the fraud in time but also alerted the cybercrime helpline to the new trick being employed by scammers.
The incident began three days ago when Ramaswami mistakenly transferred Rs 1,500 via UPI to the wrong number. "I called the recipient, and he assured me that he would return the money," she told TOI.
On Monday morning, Ramaswami received a call from an unknown person who claimed to be the father of the man she had mistakenly transferred money to.
"He told me his son had asked him to return the money and said he would first send Rs 10 to confirm. Within seconds, I received a message saying Rs 10 was credited to my account," she said.
Moments later, the caller claimed to have mistakenly transferred Rs 50,000 instead of Rs 1,500 and asked her to send Rs 45,000 back. "That's when I got suspicious," Ramaswami said. "I told him I would first check with my bank. He started pressuring me, and when I refused, he became abusive.
I disconnected the call and immediately contacted my bank."
To her shock, the bank executive confirmed that no such amounts had been deposited in her account. The credit messages she received were fake.
"The fraudster had mimicked official bank SMS formats to make it look like genuine auto-generated messages," she explained. "It's a clever tactic meant to trick unsuspecting people into refunding money they never actually received."
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Ramaswami reported the scam attempt to the cybercrime helpline and urged others to stay alert. "If I hadn't verified the messages, I could've lost Rs 50,000. Always double-check with your bank before acting on any credit message," she advised.
Vadodara: A senior citizen from Alkapuri in Vadodara narrowly avoided falling victim to a cyber scam after receiving fake SMS alerts claiming money had been credited to her bank account.
Devika Ramaswami (62), a retired employee of a multinational company, not only recognised the fraud in time but also alerted the cybercrime helpline to the new trick being employed by scammers.
The incident began three days ago when Ramaswami mistakenly transferred Rs 1,500 via UPI to the wrong number. "I called the recipient, and he assured me that he would return the money," she told TOI.
On Monday morning, Ramaswami received a call from an unknown person who claimed to be the father of the man she had mistakenly transferred money to.
"He told me his son had asked him to return the money and said he would first send Rs 10 to confirm. Within seconds, I received a message saying Rs 10 was credited to my account," she said.
Moments later, the caller claimed to have mistakenly transferred Rs 50,000 instead of Rs 1,500 and asked her to send RS 45,000 back. "That's when I got suspicious," Ramaswami said. "I told him I would first check with my bank. He started pressuring me, and when I refused, he became abusive.
I disconnected the call and immediately contacted my bank."
To her shock, the bank executive confirmed that no such amounts had been deposited in her account. The credit messages she received were fake.
"The fraudster had mimicked official bank SMS formats to make it look like genuine auto-generated messages," she explained. "It's a clever tactic meant to trick unsuspecting people into refunding money they never actually received."
Ramaswami reported the scam attempt to the cybercrime helpline and urged others to stay alert. "If I hadn't verified the messages, I could've lost Rs 50,000. Always double-check with your bank before acting on any credit message," she advised.