Hyderabad: The digital age is also emerging as the age of identity theft. From spoofed websites to spoofed emails and spoofed browsers, the latest trick for scammers is the spoofed e-wallet.
As more merchants turn to digital payment platforms, including e-wallets to accept payments from customers, scammers are now deceiving merchants by using spoofed apps.
On Monday, Vanasthalipuram police arrested two youths from Ibrahimpatnam, who duped a Rs 2,800 mobile accessories trader after buying a few items. The duo, according to police, tricked the merchant into using a spoofed Paytm app.
Hyderabad News
click here for more information on Hyderabad
Police, who booked young people under Articles 420 of the IPC and 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act, said fraudsters now easily download spoofed e-wallet apps from various platforms and installed them on their cell phones. “After visiting a store, they make purchases, and under the guise of transferring money through an e-wallet, enter details like phone number, store name, amount and other details in the store. fake application to create a fake payment notification. The spoofed Paytm app also sends a payment notification to the merchant’s account, but no money is initially credited to their bank account, ”Cybercrime ACP (Hyderabad) KVM Prasad said.
Merchants are usually busy dealing with customers and after viewing the payment notification on the buyer’s cell phone, allow them to leave the store. “If any doubts are raised by the store owners, the scammers convince them that there may be a delay in updating the bank account,” he said.
A few cases were also reported in Hyderabad earlier of crooks adopting this modus operandi to deceive traders. Police also caught gangs creating spoofed apps and circulating them among their accomplices who then walked around and cheated on traders.
Meanwhile, Paytm has listed several other ways to help its merchant partners avoid getting ripped off. Merchant partners can check the details of each transaction, download daily or weekly reports, and also access vital business information such as the estimated time of bank settlement, among others.
He also said that a Paytm sound board can be installed to get instant audio confirmation of payments. The Paytm Sounding Board supports payments on Paytm QR Codes via multiple payment methods – Paytm Wallet, Debit and Credit Cards, Net Banking and BHIM UPI.
Merchant partners should also pay attention to the confirmation ticker on the Paytm app, the company said.
Now you can get handpicked stories from Telangana today to Telegram everyday. Click on the link to subscribe.
Click to follow the Telangana Today Facebook page and Twitter .
