In a shocking revelation, actor-dancer Shantanu Maheshwari recently had a harrowing experience when he fell victim to a bank fraud and was dealing with it between the 19th and 29th January. The incident has left his deeply concerned and frustrated as he battles to rectify the unauthorized transactions. "My email ID and phone number that are already linked to your bank account were changed. With the changed number and ID, that person bought a different virtual My Zone card through my credit card and for that also I didn't get any intimation and from that card the spending was done," he explains, adding, "The card was generated without my knowledge, no OTP and nothing. That's what's so scary and not just for me, for anyone. How can your number and mail ID be shared with anyone? And how can it be changed and a credit card can be applied without you knowing about it?"
Narrating the whole ordeal, he says, "I got to know about this when I was trying to pay a restaurant bill and it said 'insufficient balance' in my credit card. I knew that I hadn't spent anything, so I checked and saw that the limit of five lakhs was maxed out. When I realised that someone else is using it, I told my bank that this has happened without my authorisation and they asked me to change it via their application, but it was under maintenance so that couldn't happen."
The Gangubai Kathiawadi actor tells us that despite reaching out to his bank for resolution, he faced challenges. "I had a fight with the bank because they have been calling me to pay the bill as it's a two-way authentication, and there's no way I was not aware of it," he states. "I told them that I haven't given any authentication and that's a problem from your end, no one has access. It still hasn't been resolved. I was shocked to see their mail saying 'you have to pay'. They are not taking the responsibility of the OTP and mail ID being changed, so I am still fighting for it. They still haven't changed the wrong number and mail ID," the 32-year-old further adds.
As a public figure, Maheshwari feels a responsibility to shed light on such incidents. "If something of this sort is happening to others as well, it is a huge problem. It's important to stand up and say these things out loud. As a public figure, I can raise my voice and tell people about it, I can't even imagine vo log kya karte honge. It's important to stand up and say these things out loud. I have blocked all my cards now and don't think I will be using any card or something for a while now," the actor ends.
{{/usCountry}}As a public figure, Maheshwari feels a responsibility to shed light on such incidents. "If something of this sort is happening to others as well, it is a huge problem. It's important to stand up and say these things out loud. As a public figure, I can raise my voice and tell people about it, I can't even imagine vo log kya karte honge. It's important to stand up and say these things out loud. I have blocked all my cards now and don't think I will be using any card or something for a while now," the actor ends.
{{/usCountry}}