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Cybercriminals used an AI-generated video and fake official communication to trap a 54-year-old into transferring money across nine transactions.
A 54-year-old resident of CV Raman Nagar in Bengaluru has been duped of ₹33,25,413 after cybercriminals tricked her using a deepfake video that appeared to show Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman endorsing an online trading platform. The manipulation made the platform look legitimate, prompting her to sign up and share personal banking information.
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Soon after registering, she was added to a WhatsApp group where she was instructed to make an initial transfer of ₹21,000 to begin trading. She later received phone calls from a woman identifying herself as “Varnika Reddy, senior finance adviser with Naka Solution Ltd,” who claimed she had already earned USD 88,000 in profits. The victim was told the amount could be withdrawn only after clearing multiple charges, including securities transaction tax, a one-time tax, FEMA-related charges, and atomic wallet fees.
To make the fraud appear authentic, the scammers sent her emails and messages that seemed to originate from the Reserve Bank of India and a private bank. Convinced by these communications, she ended up transferring money repeatedly between October and December. She made nine transactions to six different merchant accounts across several banks, believing each payment was necessary to release her supposed profit.
It was only when the demands continued without any payout that she realised the platform was fraudulent. She then approached the police, who have registered a case under the Information Technology Act and BNS Section 318 (cheating).
Police officials have warned citizens about the rising misuse of AI-generated deepfake videos and urged the public to verify investment-related claims before sharing personal or financial details.
