7 minutes agoAuthor: Sandeep Singh
- copy link
In this era of digitalization, making online transactions has become more convenient and easier than ever. UPI (Unified Payments Interface) has emerged as a game changer in this.
According to the latest data of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCA), 1,443 crore transactions were done through UPI in India in July 2024. A total amount of Rs 20.64 lakh crore was transferred through this transaction.
Due to the increasing use of UPI, cases of fraud are also being seen. Cybercriminals are inventing a new way to cheat people every day. The new scam in this series is – ‘UPI Auto-Pay Request Scam.’
In this scam, as soon as the UPI auto-pay request is approved, the money from the account gets transferred to the scammers’ account.
so today news of need I will talk about what is UPI auto-pay request scam? Also, we will know that-
- How to avoid UPI auto-pay request scam?
- What is common in scams happening through UPI?
Expert: Ishaan Sinha, Cyber Expert (New Delhi)
Question- What is UPI Auto-Pay feature?
answer- NPCI launched the ‘UPI Auto-Pay’ feature in July 2020. With the help of this feature, the payment of monthly fixed expenses like mobile recharge, mutual fund investment, loan, credit card bill payment or OTT subscription plan is made automatically without missing the due date. For this, the user has to set the time and date of payment. By using this, users can avoid late fees or penalties.
Question- What is UPI Auto-Pay Request Scam?
answer- Cyber expert Ishaan Sinha explains that in this scam, scammers send an auto-pay request to the UPI user. After this, they try to deceive the user by telling a false story.
Like your electricity bill has not been paid or your OTT subscription is about to expire. Usually these requests are in the name of companies that send collect money or auto-pay requests every month.
Due to similar requests, users easily fall into the trap of scammers and approve the request and become a victim of the scam.
Question- How can I avoid UPI auto-pay request scam?
answer- The introduction of UPI as an online payment platform has made our daily transactions much simpler. But cases of UPI fraud are also becoming common in India.
According to data from the Finance Ministry, more than 95,000 cases of UPI fraud were reported in the financial year 2022-23.
In most cases of UPI fraud, cyber criminals use fear, greed or emotionally blackmail the user. To avoid falling prey to UPI fraud, one needs to always be alert and aware of the different methods of these scams.
Understand how to avoid UPI auto-pay request scam from the graphic given below.
Apart from this, users can use the Norton Genie app to check the authenticity of any message, website, app. This app helps to protect against fraudulent messages received through email, social media messages and text messaging.
Question: How do cyber criminals defraud people through UPI ID?
answer- Cybercriminals use tactics like phishing, SIM swapping or creating fake UPI IDs to target users.
Understand from the graphic given below.
Question- How do cyber criminals commit UPI fraud?
answer- Cyber expert Ishan Sinha says that it has been observed in most of the cases that scammers follow the same pattern in UPI scams.
You can understand this by following these steps given below.
step 1: Cybercriminals usually call the user instead of texting or emailing, posing as a bank representative or a customer care officer of a payment app.
Step 2: In the name of verification, they ask questions like your date of birth, name, email.
Step 3: In most cases, it has been seen that hackers tell technical problems in the app or website to talk to you. They usually weave false stories.
Step 4: When the scammer takes you in his trap, he asks the user to download an application on the phone. Some of these apps are AnyDesk and ScreenShare, which are available on Google Play Store.
Step 5: While downloading AnyDesk or similar applications, it asks for privacy permission like other apps.
Step 6: Once the app obtains all the required permissions, the scammer hacks the user’s phone without his/her knowledge and starts making transactions from the UPI account.
Question – How can one know someone’s UPI ID?
answer- UPI ID usually contains the phone number followed by the UPI provider extension. Cybercriminals take advantage of this.
When you register your mobile number on e-shopping, restaurant, mall or any unauthorized website, cyber criminals steal this data. It is easy to crack UPI ID through this.
Therefore, one should always keep these things in mind. Such as-
- Before opening UPI apps, make sure to set the phone lock screen password.
- Keep checking the history of your transaction details regularly.
- Always connect your phone or laptop to a secure Wi-Fi connection.
- People doing digital transactions should be more cautious while giving mobile numbers in public places like restaurants, malls, cinema halls etc.
- Apart from this, one should avoid registering the mobile number on unknown websites or apps.
- You should change your UPI PIN regularly for financial security.
- If you notice any fraud related to UPI, you should immediately contact your bank.
- To lodge a complaint against scammers, you can contact cyber helpline number 1930.
