UPI Scams And How To Save Yourself From It?

India has been grappling with a surge of fraudulent and illegitimate activities with the onset of digitalization and with the relevance of the United Payments Interface (UPI) at an all-time high. Scammers have found a new way to manipulate and fool people into falling into their traps. UPI scam refers to any fraudulent transactions that take place with UPI.

What To Know And How Does It Work?

• The new UPI scam involved scammers sending the victim a spoofed credit message’ portraying that an amount of money had been credited into their account through a UPI transaction. 

• This message is usually posed by the scammer as from a credible bank or payment service provider as well. 

• The scammers may accompany the spoofed credit messages with promises of rewards and incentives for transferring the credited amount to a designated account. 

• These promises may force victims to comply with the scammer's instructions in hopes of gaining additional financial benefits. 

• Victims, taking into account that other spoofed credit messages are credible and genuine, proceed to transfer the credited amount to the scammer's account using UPI or other digital payment methods. 

• As a result, they involuntarily and unknowingly become accomplices in facilitating unauthorised transactions and suffer financial losses, in turn becoming the ultimate victims of the scam when they thought they’d be getting some level of financial gain. 

Different Types Of UPI Scams

• Phishing is a type of UPI scam where they send you fake UPI links or ask for sensitive information like UPI PINs, passwords, etc. They then use it to make fraudulent transactions without your knowledge.

• Some links sent by scammers may even contain malware, so when one clicks on the link, the software will get into the system and get all the sensitive information on your device.

• Money mulling is a type of scam where they target people who can be used as intermediaries. The scammers tell them that they will receive some commission in return for using their UPI account to receive or transfer funds.

• SIM cloning is the process when scammers make a duplicate SIM of the targeted person to get their sensitive pieces of information like UPI PINs, passwords, etc.

• Vishing is another type of scam where they pose as bank officials or as representatives from any UPI payment providers to gain the victim's trust. They then manipulate them to reveal sensitive pieces of information.

How Do You Prevent UPI Scams?

• Be cautious of random calls and messages. Never reveal sensitive information on calls. Immediately disconnect if they ask for a UPI PIN, password, or other information.

• UPI apps have built-in filters that will help you identify scams. Pay attention to alerts and avoid accepting requests from unknown sources.

• Follow security measures. Set a strong UPI PIN, and do not use the same PIN for a lot of apps. Change the PINs often.

• Keep track of all your UPI transactions for any unauthorised transactions. If you spot any such unauthorised transactions, report them to your bank immediately. 

A Recent Case Study

A woman recently wrote about how someone tried to scam her on Twitter (X). She received a call from a scammer posing as an associate of LIC transactions. She wrote, “Omg guys, someone recently tried to scam me with UPI. I was at my parents'. My dad and I had just discussed maturing investments and what to do next with them. He had just left the house. I got a call from some guy who said he got my number from my dad.” on Twitter. 

The scammer tried to convince her to send Rs. 25,000 in LIC money as her father didn’t have UPI. 

The woman later felt something fishy as the scammer was trying to convince her to send Rs. 45,000 to his account, and she decided not to do anything until her father got back. 

In conclusion, to steer clear of such scams, users are required and requested to be wary of the legitimacy of such messages if they receive them and to always keep an eye on their banking account app and also their account statement for verification and cross-checking. 

If the message seems illegitimate, don’t give out any response and block the user or the number from which you got the message or call. 

Watch this video on how UPI Scams can hurt you financial and how to stay safe and keep your loved ones save from this fraud.

It is important and mandatory that every UPI user stay wary of such fraudulent practices. Call 1930 or register your grievance within 4 hours on the NPCI portal.