India
oi-Ashish Rana
Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Police have discovered a new type of online fraud in which criminals are pretending to be company bosses and tricked employees into transferring large amounts of money.
Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Police identified a ‘boss scam’ using malware to impersonate executives, leading to frauds like Rs 1.5 crore being transferred from Praveen Nagjibhai Bavaliya’s company on June 23, 2026; two suspects were arrested in West Bengal.
In one such case, hackers managed to get Rs 1.5 crore transferred from a company accounts within hours. According to Police, the gang used fake SIM cards, malware, OTPs and WhatsApp accounts to carry out the fraud.
How the Rs 1.5 Crore Fraud Happened
The case came to light after a real estate businessman Praveen Nagjibhai Bavaliya filed a complaint. On 23 June, 2026, Bavaliya received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number. The sender who claimed to be from Reserve Bank of India’s “Risk Control” department. The message threatened like that some unusual transaction had been found in his company’s bank account and now the account can be banned or suspended.
Even a ZIP file was sent with the message. Bavaliya said that he had been getting similar kind of messages from almost six months. He said he sent the link to his company accountant and asked him to check it.
The accountant opened the file on the desktop and downloaded it. According to police, the malware then gave hacker the access to WhatsApp contacts and messages. At that time, Balaviya was attending the wedding in Udaipur which was known to hacker. He used Bavaliya’s name and profile picture to message the accountant.
He then asked the accountant to immediately transfer Rs 1.5 crore to a garment company in Kolkata. He even made the payment through RTGS.
Police Recover More Than Rs 1 Crore
However, the fraud was reported through 1920 cybercrime helpline. The Police said they have recovered or froze Rs 1,13,53,700 while Rs 25 lakh had already been sent abroad.
Police have arrested Irm Ali Piyada and Injamul Mollah in West Bengal. Their investigation is still underway.
The police has studied almost 251 cybercrime complaints from 26 states related to 4,500 SIM cards. The complaints include almost 194 online financial fraud cases and three boss scam cases. Around 10,000 malware-infected devices were also recovered. The police have seized seven mobile phones and Airtel router.
How the Boss Scam Works
Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch DSP Lavina Sinha said criminals first send malware through WhatsApp or email. They may pretend to be from the RBI or another government agency.
The malware can give criminals control of a WhatsApp Web session. They then use the boss’s name and photo to create a fake identity and contact an employee who handles company payments.
Police said fake SIM cards and OTPs are also used to activate WhatsApp accounts.
The investigation suggests the network may have links to China, Pakistan and Hong Kong. Police also suspect that the malware was developed by cybercriminals linked to China.
Sinha advised people not to open unknown ZIP, EXE, DLL or APK files. Employees should always confirm urgent payment requests by calling the boss directly.
She also advised users to check WhatsApp’s linked devices regularly, remove unknown devices and keep two-factor authentication switched on.
Anyone who becomes a victim of cyber fraud should immediately call 1930 or file a complaint at cybercrime.gov.in.
