A 27-year-old resident of Tarnaka, Secunderabad was duped of over â¹7 lakh in an APK file fraud.The scam unfolded on July 25, when the victim received a phone call from an individual posing as a bank representative. The caller spoke about the auto-renewal of fixed deposits held by the victim. Though the offer was declined, an SMS followed shortly after the call, containing a link âimobilelite.apkâ.Unaware of the consequences, the victim installed the application, which covertly enabled remote access to the device. Soon after, the victim began receiving SMS alerts regarding one-time passwords (OTPs) and transactions. Despite not sharing any OTPs, unauthorised debits began occurring on the victimâs credit cards.When the victim contacted ICICI Bankâs customer care to block the cards, it emerged that the fraudster had not only accessed the credit cards, but had also prematurely closed the victimâs fixed deposits. The proceeds from these deposits had been transferred to the credit cards, which were then used to carry out further transactions and empty the accounts.The total loss amounted to â¹7,05,049. The victim lodged a complaint with the cyber crime wing of the Hyderabad Police. A case was booked and further investigation is underway.Published - July 28, 2025 06:29 pm IST