Fake trading platform: Reluctant to invest first, techie given Rs 5,400 ‘advance’, loses Rs 68 lakh in week

Fake trading platform: Reluctant to invest first, techie given Rs 5, 400 'advance', loses Rs 68 lakh in week The payment convinced him the individuals were genuine.

What happened

Authorities have additionally expressed reservations over citizens continuing to fall prey to these scams in spite of a number of advistories, sensitisation campaigns and wide media coverage in this regard.

For context, a 55-year-old Pune IT engineer. This person was initially reluctant to invest in a stock market platform, was lured by cyber fraudsters, who deposited Rs 5, 400 in his bank account as advance to convince him that the platform was genuine. Within a week of beginning investments, he lost Rs 67.94 lakh to mule accounts provided by the fraudsters as he was convinced that he had earned Rs 8.46 crore.

According to the FIR registered by Pune Cyber police, the fraud began in August when the man was continued to join a WhatsApp group while searching online for information related to share trading. While one of the women communicating with him asserted to be an agent of an investment business, members of the group discussed shares and initial public offerings. She informed him the group would provide recommendations on shares and IPOs and promised high returns on relatively small investments, the FIR states. The victim initially did not participate and only observed the conversations.

The bottom line

Taken together, the developments around fake trading platform: Reluctant to invest first, techie given Rs 5, 400 'advance', point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.