Surat: A 64-year-old textile manufacturing unit owner residing in Athwalines was allegedly duped of Rs 40 lakh after unidentified cybercriminals impersonated him on WhatsApp using his photograph as a display picture.Cybercrime police said the fraud took place on May 20 and 21. The complainant, who runs a textile manufacturing unit in Sachin, received a zip file on WhatsApp from an unknown mobile number on May 20. The accompanying message read: “Check your account statements in three days”.Unable to open the file on his phone, the complainant forwarded it to the firm’s accountant for verification. However, the accountant was also unable to open the file, either on his mobile phone or computer.The following day, the accountant received a WhatsApp message from a number displaying the complainant’s photograph as its profile picture. Believing the message was from the firm’s owner, the accountant shared the company’s bank account details as requested.The impersonator then instructed the accountant to transfer Rs 40 lakh via RTGS to a specified bank account, claiming that he was in a meeting and could not speak over the phone.The accountant subsequently initiated the transfer and authorised the transaction using an OTP received by the complainant’s son.Soon after the transaction, another son of the complainant received an alert about the movement of funds and called his father to verify the payment. The complainant then realised that he had not authorised any such transfer.When questioned, the accountant told the complainant that he had acted on what he believed were the owner’s instructions.The following day, another accountant at the firm received similar WhatsApp messages from the same number asking for bank account details. However, he did not share any information after learning about the fraud.Cybercrime police registered a case on Monday for cheating and forgery.
