Daijiworld Media Network- Kundapur

Kundapur, Aug 3: In yet another disturbing case of cybercrime, a 60-year-old man from Koni near Kundapura has alleged that fraudsters siphoned off Rs 2.07 lac from his bank account in a series of unauthorised transactions after he attempted to make an electricity bill payment via Google Pay.

The victim, identified as Prabhakar, stated in his complaint that on August 2 around 11 am, he tried to open the Google Pay app on his mobile phone to pay his electricity bill. However, despite generating an OTP, the app failed to open. Suspecting a technical glitch, he attempted multiple times to access the app.

To his shock, Prabhakar later received a series of SMS alerts informing him of six consecutive withdrawals from his account totalling Rs 2,07,891. The breakdown of the transactions includes amounts of Rs 98,500, Rs 30,332, Rs 24,599, Rs 40,214, Rs 14,460, and Rs 822.

Alarmed by the sudden deductions, he immediately contacted Canara Bank's customer care and requested to block his account and ATM card. Upon visiting the bank, he was informed that cyber fraudsters had executed the transactions and wiped out the funds from his account.

A case has been registered and further investigation is underway to trace the culprits and recover the lost amount. The incident has once again raised concerns over digital payment vulnerabilities and the rising threat of online financial fraud.