Vizagites duped of Rs 35 lakh in credit card limit upgrade scam

Visakhapatnam: A sudden message, call or WhatsApp text claiming a pre-approved increase in your credit card limit could be a big scam. Cybercrooks use a simple trick to steal your hard-earned earnings and personal details. Vizagites lost over Rs 35 lakh to the scam in just one month.A 30-year-old software professional in Vizag city fell victim to around Rs 1.5 lakh credit card limit update fraud. The victim received a phone call from an individual claiming to be a representative of a reputed bank’s customer care department. The caller offered to upgrade the victim’s existing credit card, promising a higher credit card limit of up to Rs 5 lakh. To facilitate the process, the fraudsters requested some sensitive information. A few minutes after sharing the information, the software professional noticed that around Rs 1.5 lakh cash was debited from his bank account.Like the software professional, more than 20 people from parts of Vizag fell victim to over Rs 25 lakh credit card limit upgrade fraud in the past month.In another incident, a 26-year-old man from Vizag city lost over Rs 1.25 lakh when he attempted to deactivate a credit card. The victim stated that he had a credit card but had not been activated. He received a call from an unknown number, who posed as a representative of the credit card department.When the credit card holder asked the caller to deactivate the credit card, the caller sent an APK file and asked him to click on the file for the process. Noticing something fishy, the cardholders refused to open the click. However, the caller sent some OTPs to him and later managed to loot around Rs 1.25 lakh from the cardholder’s account. Similarly, ten more people lost over Rs 10 lakh in the past month.The police said cybercrooks often pretend to be staff of the various banks or credit card representatives and offer quick limit increases. The fraudsters aim to trick the credit card holders into sharing card details or paying fake processing fees. Once they get the information, they can misuse it to steal money. Always verify such credit card offers directly with your bank before taking any action, the police added.We have been appealing to the people to be cautious if they get any kind of message asking them to act immediately to claim the credit card limit increase offer. Such urgency is a common trick used by cybercrooks to trap people. Always check credit card offers only on your bank’s official app or website, and never click on unknown links and APK files. Report any suspicious activity to your bank right away, the police added.