A 75-year-old resident of Habsiguda lost ₹1,09,610 after responding to a fake D-Mart grocery offer circulating on Facebook, according to the Cyber Crime Police of Hyderabad.
An officer from the wing said that the victim had entered his contact details after seeing an advertisement offering groceries for ₹298.
On November 24, at around 4.30 p.m., he received a call from an unknown person who claimed the order was confirmed and sent him an APK file through WhatsApp.
Police said the victim installed the file and entered his SBI credit card details to make the ₹298 payment.
His phone then became unresponsive and multiple OTPs appeared, prompting him to alert his son. The cards were blocked immediately. Checks with SBI and Axis Bank later showed that three unauthorised transactions had been carried out, amounting to ₹1,09,610.
Investigators said fraudsters are circulating fake D-Mart advertisements on Facebook offering unrealistic prices to lure users into sharing personal details. Scammers typically send malicious APK files through WhatsApp under the guise of order confirmation or payment. Once installed, these files allow remote access to the victim’s device and financial information, enabling unauthorised transactions without the victim’s knowledge.
Officials advised the public not to click on suspicious links or trust extremely low-priced offers on social media, and to avoid installing APK files sent by unknown numbers. They said offers should be verified only through official websites or apps of companies such as D-Mart. Card details, OTPs and passwords should not be shared with anyone over calls or messages.
Published – December 07, 2025 06:48 pm IST
