Noida woman’s sim card hacked, ₹27 lakh siphoned off

The suspect asked Bhatia to select the e-SIM feature in the SIM’s application and enter a code received on the message, as she did it her number got deactivated

Noida: A 44-year-old woman was duped of ₹27 lakh after her SIM card was hacked on the pretext of converting it to embedded SIM (eSIM) in Sector 82, Noida, said police on Sunday, adding that the accused also took a loan of ₹7.40 lakh using her SIM card.

The suspect accessed her mobile banking application through her mobile number and changed her email ID and siphoned off around ₹27 lakh in multiple transactions. (Representational image)

Police have registered a first information report (FIR) following a complaint filed at cybercrime police station, Sector 36, Noida by Jyotsana Bhatia, a resident of Sector 82 who works at a private company, officers said.

On August 31, she received a WhatsApp call and the caller introduced himself as a customer care executive from a telecom firm. The accused told her about a new feature of e-SIM that could be activated if her mobile gets lost, said Vijay Kumar Gautam, station house officer (SHO), cybercrime branch, citing Bhatia’s complaint.

An eSIM is a digital SIM card built into a device instead of using a removable physical SIM card.

“The suspect asked Bhatia to select the e-SIM feature in the SIM’s application and enter a code received on the message. As she followed the suspect’s instruction, her mobile number was deactivated immediately,” the officer said. But the suspect assured her saying that a new SIM will be delivered by September 1.

“When she did not receive the SIM card on September 1, she dialed the customer care and was instructed to visit the service centre for a duplicate SIM,” the SHO added.

After three days of processing, Bhatia got a new SIM on September 3 but received multiple messages from the bank.

“The suspect broke my fixed deposit, siphoned off money from two bank accounts, and extended a loan of ₹7.40 lakh in my name without my knowledge,” she alleged in the FIR.

The suspect accessed her mobile banking application through her mobile number and changed her email ID. They siphoned off around ₹27 lakh in multiple transactions,” the officer informed.

Police registered a case under sections 318(4) (cheating) and 319 (2) (cheating by personation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and IT Act on Thursday (September 5), and efforts are underway to nab the suspect, he added. .