Port Blair: A South Andaman resident has allegedly lost nearly ₹6 lakh in a sophisticated cyber fraud after scammers posing as representatives of SBI YONO tricked him into sharing confidential One-Time Passwords (OTPs), exposing yet another alarming instance of digital banking fraud targeting unsuspecting customers. According to a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Cyber Crime Police Station, South Andaman, the victim was duped of ₹5.88 lakh after fraudsters exploited his attempt to restore blocked UPI services linked to his bank account.
The complainant had reportedly approached a State Bank of India branch here after experiencing issues with UPI transactions. Bank officials advised him to install the SBI YONO mobile application, following which the UPI facility was expected to become operational.
However, what appeared to be a routine banking process soon turned into a costly cyber trap. As per the complaint, on April 28, 2026, the victim received a phone call from a person claiming to be an SBI YONO representative.
The caller allegedly informed him that the blocked UPI services would be activated shortly and, under the pretext of completing the process, persuaded him to disclose two OTPs received on his registered mobile number.
Within minutes of sharing the OTPs, the complainant began receiving SMS alerts indicating that two high-value transactions had been processed from his account without his consent. The first transaction amounted to ₹3,99,800, while the second involved ₹1,88,500, taking the total loss to ₹5,88,300. Realising that he had fallen victim to a cyber fraud, the complainant immediately reported the incident through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) earlier this month.
Following preliminary verification, the Cyber Crime Police Station, South Andaman, registered FIR No. 0014/2026 on May 28 under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita dealing with cheating, impersonation and cyber-enabled financial fraud. The case once again highlights the growing menace of cyber criminals impersonating bank officials to gain access to customers’ financial credentials. Banking experts and law enforcement agencies have repeatedly cautioned customers that no bank employee or authorised representative ever asks for OTPs, PINs, passwords or other confidential authentication details over phone calls.
Police have urged the public to remain vigilant and immediately report suspicious calls, messages or online transactions through the National Cyber Crime Helpline (1930) or the NCRP portal to improve the chances of freezing fraudulently transferred funds.
