Cyber Police arrest a 21-year-old in North-East Delhi for exploiting a lost SIM card to drain the victim’s bank account via UPI.

After his SIM card vanished, a tea shop owner in Seelampur, New Delhi, lost ₹2.36 lakh in a UPI scam.  On June 19, a 21-year-old suspect was taken into custody by the North-East District Cyber Police of Delhi, who also retrieved important evidence, such as SIM cards and a cell phone used in the scam.

On June 4, days after discovering unauthorised UPI transactions from his wife’s bank account, the victim, Gareeb Nath Gupta, reported the crime.  His Samsung keypad phone with an active SIM card vanished on May 27. Fraudulent transactions were conducted using the lost SIM between May 28 and June 2.

To link the activity to an Airtel Payments Bank account, a special cybercrime unit under the direction of Inspector Rahul Kumar and overseen by ACP Mangesh Gedam employed digital forensics and technical surveillance.

The culprit, Md. Monish, a mobile phone repairer from Delhi’s Janta Mazdoor Colony, acknowledged buying stolen phones with SIM cards still in working order.  He transferred money using UPI apps and accessed connected bank accounts using them.

One cell phone and two SIM cards have been found by the police, and ₹35,000 has been frozen. They are now investigating a wider network, possibly involved in similar cybercrimes.

Quote:

“This case shows how even basic phone users are vulnerable. People must immediately block SIM cards if lost and monitor bank accounts closely,” said an official from Cyber PS, North-East Delhi.

Advice:

The instance demonstrates how low-tech thefts, such as lost phones, can be taken advantage of online, particularly with SIM cards connected to UPI. It also demonstrates how cybercriminals target non-technical individuals as well.

Cyber Safety Tips:

• If your SIM card is lost or stolen, block it right away.
• Make sure all UPI and banking apps have two-factor authentication (2FA) enabled.
• Don’t store bank account information or UPI credentials on outdated or unprotected phones.
• Observe bank statements regularly and report any questionable activity on cybercrime.gov.in.