Hyderabad: The Hyderabad City Cyber Crime Police have issued an alert warning citizens about a growing cyber fraud involving fake e-challan payment links being circulated through SMS and WhatsApp messages.
According to the police, unknown cyber fraudsters are sending deceptive messages claiming that vehicle traffic challans are pending and urging recipients to make immediate payment through a provided link. These fraudulent links are designed to closely resemble official government websites, making it difficult for users to identify them as fake.
Explaining the modus operandi, V. Aravind Babu, DCP, Cyber Crimes Unit, said that once a victim clicks on the fake link, they are asked to enter their vehicle registration number. A challan amount is then displayed to make the message appear genuine. “When victims proceed to make the payment, malicious software gets installed on their mobile phones or their banking credentials are compromised, leading to unauthorised transactions and mobile hacking,” he said.
Highlighting the seriousness of the threat, Hyderabad City Police on Wednesday shared a real case on social media. “A citizen lost approximately Rs 6 lakh after clicking a fake e-challan link. The website looked exactly like the official police portal. After he attempted to pay a Rs 500 fine, fraudsters withdrew €6,900 (around Rs 6 lakh) from his credit card through unauthorised international transactions,” the police posted on X.
Hyderabad CP’s Advice
City Police Commissioner Sajjanar advised citizens not to make traffic fine payments through links received via SMS or WhatsApp. He urged the public to always visit official portals such as echallan.parivahan.gov.in or the respective State Traffic Police website directly to check and pay challans.
The Cyber Crime Police further cautioned that government departments do not send payment links through WhatsApp, SMS, or personal messages. Citizens were advised not to click on suspicious or unknown links received on social media platforms.
Police also urged the public not to share OTPs, UPI PINs, debit or credit card details, or personal information on unverified websites. Citizens were advised to install applications only from official app stores and keep their mobile phones updated with the latest security patches and antivirus software to avoid cyber threats.
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