Scam Alert! Uber Customer Care Number In Google Search Leads To Man Losing Rs 5 Lakh; Here's How

(MENAFN- AsiaNet News) After paying an additional Rs 100 for an Uber ride, a man
allegedly fell victim to fraud when he called a customer service number that showed up in Google search results. He reportedly lost more than Rs five lakh to an online fraud since the number on the listing was fake. The victim, Pradeep Chowdhary, who lives in SJ Enclave, paid Rs 205 for a taxi ride to Gurugram, but Uber charged him Rs 318, according to the FIR that news agency IANS was able to obtain.

Chowdhary complained and stated: "The driver advised me to contact customer service to receive a refund. '6289339056,' which led to '6294613240,' and then to Rakesh Mishra at '9832459993,' is the number I got from Google."

"He then told me to go to the Google Play Store and download the 'Rust Desk app.' Then he instructed me to access PayTM and message "rfnd 112" to receive the refund money. Chowdhary continued, "He said it was for account verification when asked why I was giving him my phone number.

After a transfer of Rs 83,760 to Atul Kumar, four additional transactions totaling Rs four lakhs, Rs 20,012, Rs 49,101, and others were made. According to the complainant, three transactions were made via PayTM and one through PNB Bank.

According to a senior police source who spoke with the news agency, an investigation is still on into the allegations made in an FIR under sections 420 of the Indian Penal Code and 66D of the Information Technology Act.

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