Bengaluru woman loses ₹3.75 crore in AI deepfake scam featuring Sadhguru

Fraudsters used an AI-generated deepfake of Sadhguru to lure a CV Raman Nagar resident into investing in a fake trading platform, resulting in a ₹3.75 crore loss.

In a shocking case of cybercrime powered by artificial intelligence, a 57-year-old woman from CV Raman Nagar was allegedly cheated of ₹3.75 crore after being lured by fraudsters using a deepfake video of spiritual leader Sadhguru.

According to the police complaint, the woman came across a video featuring what appeared to be Sadhguru endorsing an online trading platform. In the AI-generated clip, the lookalike claimed to have personally benefitted from trading with the platform and urged viewers to click a link and invest USD 250 to “transform their finances.”

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Trusting the message, the victim clicked the link, provided her details, and was soon contacted by a so-called company representative who guided her through the investment process. Over the course of two months, between February and April, she transferred a staggering ₹3,75,72,121 into the trading application, believing her investments were generating profits.

The scam came to light only when she attempted to withdraw her earnings and found that her account had been blocked. Realising she had been duped, she approached the city’s cybercrime police, who have now registered a case under relevant sections of the Information Technology Act and Indian Penal Code.

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