Frauds

Smaller AI models likely powering India's escalating deepfake menace

Cheap, customised AI tools are making deepfake scams harder to detect, exposing banks, fintechs and consumers to rising fraud risks

India's digital fraud rate nearly double the global average: TransUnion

TransUnion says 7.1 per cent of digital transactions in India were suspected fraud attempts in 2025, with logistics, telecom and insurance sectors facing the highest risk

From Reels to risks: How scammers are turning videos into malware traps

Cybercriminals are moving beyond email scams and into social media feeds, using tutorial-style videos on TikTok and Instagram to spread malware and steal credentials

Indian-American arrested in California over alleged $100 million bank fraud

A 44-year-old Indian-American man was arrested in California for allegedly defrauding a bank of nearly USD 100 million by manipulating title records of insurance policies. Mahender Makhijani has been living in the US on a Green Card and faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison if convicted. "Mahender Makhijani, a lawful permanent resident from India living in Corona del Mar, was arrested this (Wednesday) morning on a federal criminal complaint charging him with defrauding a bank out of nearly USD 100 million," Bilal Essayli, First Assistant US Attorney for the Central District of California, said. As alleged, Makhijani falsified title insurance records, concealed true lien positions, and used a network of shell companies to mislead a federally insured bank out of nearly USD 100 million," said Darren Lian, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation's Los Angeles Field Office. In a statement on Wednesday, Essayli said the arrest highlighted his office's continue

WhatsApp may soon flag scam messages without reading your chats: Details

WhatsApp is reportedly developing a Scam Alert feature that could warn users about suspicious messages from unknown contacts without reading chats or compromising end-to-end encryption

US shuts India-based call centre operation that defrauded elderly Americans

US authorities have shut down an India-based call centre operation that allegedly defrauded hundreds of elderly Americans of millions of dollars through tech support scams, following a years-long investigation that led to the conviction of five "telemarketing fraudsters". In a social media post on Wednesday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Boston said that the probe also resulted in the arrest and conviction of a former employee of the call routing company used by the fraudsters. It said the call centre scam targeted hundreds of elderly victims in the US and abroad and defrauded them of millions of dollars, and two senior executives who operated a business that enabled it have just admitted to turning a blind eye to this widespread fraud. "This comes after an FBI Boston investigation that has resulted in the arrests & convictions of a former employee of their call routing company, and five India-based telemarketing fraudsters," it said. American senior citizens deserve ..

Banks back RBI's proposed 1-hour lag for digital payments above ₹10K

But they seek increase in threshold to ₹25,000; payment industry flags operational issues

Safety mechanism: Digital payments need speed with security as fraud rises

The RBI's paper correctly identifies that the nature of fraud has changed. Most frauds today are authorised push payments, or APP frauds

RBI keeps repo rate unchanged; New curbs on digital payment frauds; RBI proposes scrapping IFR

RBI holds repo rate steady The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25%, maintaining a neutral stance.

RBI paper suggests 1-hour lag for digital payments over ₹10k to curb frauds

RBI proposes a one-hour delay for digital payments above Rs 10,000, alongside safeguards like trusted authentication and account monitoring, as fraud cases surge sharply

BPCL duped of ₹129 crore, 1093 accused nationwide; FIR against 7 in Indore

Of these, seven such individuals from MP's Indore are accused of cheating the company of approximately ₹5.72 crore

Poisoning trekkers for profit: Inside Nepal's fake helicopter rescue scam

Investigators in Nepal have exposed a fake helicopter rescue racket where trekkers were airlifted without real medical need and insurers were billed huge amounts through false claims

Sebi bars Elitecon, promoter Vipin Sharma for alleged market manipulation

Regulator alleges price manipulation, misleading disclosures and financial irregularities; orders account freeze, forensic audit and probes preferential allotment and promoter share sales

Kotak Mahindra Bank files police complaint in Panchkula FD fraud case

Bank begins reconciliation of municipal deposits, says accounts followed due process; probe comes amid broader scrutiny of deposit irregularities in Haryana

CoinDCX co-founders Gupta, Khandelwal granted bail in alleged fraud case

Court finds no prima facie case against Sumit Gupta and Neeraj Khandelwal, who claim they were victims of impersonation in Rs 71.4 lakh fraud case

Yes Bank's 5K forex card customers hit with $280K fraudulent transactions

Around 5,000 Yes Bank forex card customers were hit by fraudulent transactions totalling $280,000, with the bank blocking several attempts and initiating chargebacks to prevent financial loss

Ex-branch manager among 4 arrested in IDFC First Bank fraud case

Haryana's State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau has arrested four people, including the alleged masterminds behind the Rs 590-crore IDFC First Bank fraud, with a private firm owned by the wife of a former employee emerging at the centre of the financial irregularities. Two of the arrested are former employees of the IDFC First Bank, while the other two are private individuals who ran a partnership firm that allegedly received a substantial portion of the siphoned funds, officials said. The arrests were made on Tuesday evening as part of the ongoing investigation into the fraud that has rocked the Haryana government's financial dealings. Speaking to the media in Panchkula, State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (SV&ACB) Director General A S Chawla identified the arrested individuals as Ribhav Rishi, Abhay Kumar, Swati Singla, and Abhishek Singla. Rishi, who served as head of the bank's Sector 32 branch in Chandigarh until about six months ago, and Abhay Kumar, a ...

All funds lost in IDFC First Bank fraud recovered, says Haryana CM

Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Tuesday informed the State Assembly that the state government had recovered nearly Rs 556 crore owed to it in the IDFC First Bank case. "Nearly Rs 556 crore, including nearly Rs 22 crore in interest, came back within 24 hours," Saini said in the House. On Sunday, the bank disclosed a Rs 590-crore fraud committed by its employees and others in accounts held by the Haryana government. "I want to clarify before the House that the money concerning Haryana government departments, (the) entire amount has been deposited back into our accounts...The recovery has been made within 24 hours," Saini said. He said the bank had apprised the government that the incident primarily involved a particular branch of the bank in Chandigarh, involving four to five bank employees of middle and lower rung who colluded in the whole thing. The government will ensure that anybody who is involved be it a bank employee, private individual or even a government emplo

IDFC First Bank fraud puts spotlight back on governance gaps in pvt banks

Large banks to gain post Haryana de-empanelment of IDFC First, AU

Indian-origin former Optum director convicted for hiring 'ghost employee'

A former senior director at Optum was convicted on multiple fraud charges for hiring an unqualified friend in a no-show job and receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks