Elderly woman duped of ₹1.91 lakh over ₹175 spoilt milk order complaint— How she fell prey to cyber fraud

A 63-year-old retired woman from Gujarat's Rajkot was duped of ₹1.91 lakh in a cyber fraud after complaining about rotten milk delivered to her doorstep. The woman placed an order through Zepto, a popular grocery delivery app. Upon delivery, she discovered that the five packets of milk were spoiled. Seeking a refund, she searched for Zepto's customer care number on Google and connected with someone who identified himself as Ismail Ansari.

Believing she was speaking to a Zepto representative, she was convinced to download an APK file and follow certain steps, which ultimately led to her transferring money to various bank accounts and UPI IDs. Realizing she had been scammed, she reported the incident to the national cyber helpline, resulting in an FIR being lodged against the perpetrators at Rajkot City Cyber Crime Police Station.

The enforcement agency charged the accused with cheating and other relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act. Authorities are currently investigating the UPI IDs and bank accounts involved in the fraud. The Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (CyberDost I4C) warned citizens about fake loan apps designed to steal personal information and trap victims in fraudulent schemes.