A 60-year-old retired government servant in Thane has become the latest victim of scamsters who exploit a loophole on Google Maps to acquire bank details of people.
The Kapurbawdi police said the woman, who stays with her family at Majiwada, found on Monday that ₹1 lakh was debited from her account after she dialled a number she found on Google for Axis Bank’s Fort branch.
A police officer said, “The complainant dialled the number and it was picked up by a man who identified himself as an employee of the bank. The man then convinced her to reveal sensitive details of her debit card. He ended the call after asking her to forward him a text message she would receive.”
The officer said the woman immediately forwarded the message she received to the accused and ₹1 lakh was debited from her account within the next one hour.
FIR registered
The Kapurbawdi police have registered an FIR against unknown persons under the Information Technology Act. Senior Police Inspector Anil Deshmukh said, “We have forwarded the complaint to the Cyber Crime Cell for further investigation.”
The police believe that the accused took advantage of Google’s User Generated Content policy and entered his mobile number in the bank’s contact details on Google Maps. The first such case was reported in November last year and similar cases, which are on the rise, are being studied by the Maharashta Cyber Crime Cell.
Google and bank authorities have been striving to put measures in place to deal with the rising menace.
