Man loses Rs 6 lakh in traffic fine scam via text message link

A man lost nearly Rs 6 lakh after attempting to pay a Rs 500 traffic fine through a fake link sent via SMS. Cybercrime police warned citizens to avoid clicking unknown links and to remain alert to such scams.

Hyderabad: A man lost Rs 6 lakh to fraudsters while attempting to pay a fine of Rs 500 using a traffic challan link he had received through text message on his phone.

The victim received a message of a fine of Rs 500 imposed on his vehicle for a traffic violation. The message contained a link, and on clicking it, he was directed to a website to pay the challan.

---

“When the victim attempted to pay the challan amount by keying in some numerals, he lost 6,900 Euros, equivalent to nearly Rs 6 lakh. The fraudsters had hacked his phone and made unauthorised transactions,” said Cybercrime police.

The police urged citizens not to fall prey to such scams and not believe in messages received through text message, emails, or WhatsApp asking them to pay the challans.