Service Staff Extort Money Through Digital Paytm Wallet

A resident of southeast Delhi, was tricked into money extortion, by a phone service center. A man named Yusuf Karim, 28, has been duped for a sum of Rs 91,000 from his Paytm digital wallet.

The man gave his phone for repairing, at a service station, where the staff asked him to remove his SIM card and leave the phone for a day. He was assured that his data would remain secure.
In his complaint, Karim mentioned that he received an email intimating him about the login status of his account.

He received another text on his registered email address on Paytm which informed the transfer of Rs 19, 999 to an unknown account from a different number, which was deceptively registered in his name.

In his complaint, filed at the Okhla police station, the man further mentioned about seven other transactions made from his Paytm account leading to a sum withdrawal of Rs 80,498.

The prime suspects in the case are the staff members, or the engineers, at the service center who took the responsibility of repairing this mobile phone. Police said that even if the SIM card gets removed, offenders will be able to connect the phone to Wi-Fi and access the e-wallets. They could even empty the bank account if the wallet is linked to it.

The victim was infuriated by the lack of response from Paytm, despite raising several requests to block his account, to avoid any further fraudulent activities.

However preventive measures should have been taken by the customer, to ensure security and back-up before handing the phone to the service center.

The phone has been sent for forensic analysis, to find out the IP address from which the wallet was accessed, said the police. For further investigation, the e-wallet company will be approached.

The case prompts the awareness relating to cyber security, and the need to delete mobile applications and any other personal information, before handing it to an external source.