Gurugram woman orders alcohol online, loses money to scammers: How to stay safe

[ad_1]

In a reported incident from Gurugram, a woman incurred a loss of over 30,000 while attempting to purchase a bottle of whiskey online. In an unfortunate event, her Google search directed her to a scammer, resulting in the loss of her money.

As per a TOI report, a 32-year-old woman living in Gurugram purchased a bottle of whiskey online. Failing to locate a local wine delivery service through Google, she came across a phone number that purported to offer doorstep alcohol delivery. What began as a simple search for a convenient service culminated in a sequence of transactions, leading to a financial loss of 33,000 to scammers.

Relating her encounter to TOI, the woman detailed that following her call to the mentioned number and payment of 3,000 for a bottle of Glenfiddich via UPI, she received a subsequent call demanding extra funds for delivery. Detecting a potential scam, she opted to cancel the order. Subsequently, the scammers insisted she send 5, assuring a refund and providing a UPI transaction description featuring a sequence of numbers and characters presented as a GST number.

At first, the reimbursement of the 5 payment appeared successful. However, shortly thereafter, the woman received a notification indicating a debit of 29,986 from her bank account. Disturbed by this development, she promptly reached out to her bank and took measures to block the account. Despite refraining from downloading any dubious applications that might compromise her phone screen, Shekhawat learned from information provided by the police that her account details had been exposed following the 5 transaction.

The case is currently under active investigation by law enforcement officials, who harbor suspicions that the scam transpired during the transaction, potentially facilitated by a QR code transmitted by the fraudsters. The police have successfully identified the phone number involved and are in the process of obtaining transaction details from the bank. Efforts are being made to trace the location of the accused, leading investigators to Bharatpur.

How to stay safe online

Protecting personal and financial information is paramount. Avoid disclosing sensitive details like passwords or credit card information to unknown entities. Be cautious with email links and attachments, verifying sender identity and avoiding suspicious URLs. Use strong, unique passwords with a mix of characters and enable two-factor authentication for added security.

Never transfer money to strangers or share banking credentials. Stay vigilant against phishing attempts, as legitimate entities won’t request sensitive information via unsolicited channels. These precautions help safeguard against scams and enhance overall online security.

 

 

Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world 🌏 Click here to know more.

Catch all the Technology News and Updates on Live Mint.
Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News.

More
Less

Updated: 20 Nov 2023, 06:55 PM IST

[ad_2]

Source link

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *