Money drained from city youth’s bank account

Mysore/Mysuru: Many people are falling victim to Aadhaar-enabled Payment System (AePS) where the bank accounts are exploited by cyber criminals, resulting in unauthorised access to funds.

Scammers have utilised leaked biometric details to circumvent the need for One-Time Passwords (OTPs), facilitating the draining of funds from unsuspecting victims. A spate of recent scams has laid bare the vulnerabilities of AePS, exposing how cyber criminals exploit loopholes in the system to defraud unsuspecting customers.

In Mysuru, cyber criminals have become active, employing deceptive tactics that have left account holders in the city facing an alarming scenario — receiving sudden notifications of fund withdrawals on their mobile phones. Disturbed by these alarming notifications, individuals hastily rush to their respective bank branches. Over the past month, approximately 15 to 20 cases have been reported, as per investigations by the Cyber Economic and Narcotics (CEN) Crime Police Station.

K. Pavan Kumar, a resident of the city for instance, received a notification last Tuesday at 3.34 pm, indicating a withdrawal of Rs. 7,500 from his account. Fearful of potential threats, he promptly visited the SBI Bank branch in Chamundipuram, seeking answers regarding these suspicious transactions.

An inquiry revealed that cyber fraudsters had exploited the AePS to carry out this unauthorised transaction. The AePS links an individual’s bank account with their Aadhaar account, allowing transactions and withdrawals to be executed using biometric authentication. In this case, cyber criminals utilised Pavan Kumar’s biometrics to illicitly access funds through AePS technology.

Concerned about potential misuse, Pavan Kumar immediately visited the bank, updated his Aadhaar details and blocked his Aadhaar number to prevent further unauthorised transactions.

How to prevent AePS fraud?

Contact the bank helpline number and report the fraud. Every bank has a dedicated hotline number to report fraudulent transactions. In case you face any AePS fraud, block your bank account immediately just when you notice the first transaction. For security purposes, change your PIN, internet banking password, or any other relevant passwords associated with your account, immediately. To prevent such fraud or misuse of Aadhaar data, you must lock the biometrics using the m-Aadhaar app or the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) website.

Notably, AePS has per-day and amount-specific limits for transactions. Currently, the maximum limit for a single transaction is Rs. 10,000 with a maximum of five transactions per day. So, a total of Rs. 50,000 can be withdrawn in a day.