Bombay High Court Judge Duped of ₹6 Lakh in Online Credit Card Reward Points Scam

In a recent cyber fraud incident involving a member of the judiciary, a sitting judge of the Bombay High Court was allegedly cheated of more than ₹6 lakh while attempting to redeem credit card reward points online. The complaint has led to the registration of an FIR by the police in Mumbai.

According to the complaint, the incident took place on February 28 when the judge attempted to redeem reward points associated with an HDFC Bank credit card. While searching online for the bank’s customer care contact number, the judge came across a helpline that appeared to be legitimate and dialled it.

The person who answered the call allegedly introduced himself as a representative from the bank’s credit card department. During the conversation, the caller assured assistance in redeeming the reward points and guided the judge through a series of steps to process the request.

As part of the process, the caller sent a link through WhatsApp and asked the judge to download an application file. The judge was instructed to install the application and provide credit card details so that the reward points could supposedly be redeemed.

Initially, the file could not be opened on the judge’s iPhone. However, the judge later used another smartphone available at home, installed the application and entered the credit card information on a webpage that opened after installation.

Shortly after submitting the details, the judge received several email alerts regarding multiple transactions made using the credit card. The complaint states, “Immediately after submitting the details, I received mails on my registered email ID informing me of several transactions carried out on my credit card. This is when I realised I have been duped.”

The fraudulent transactions were reportedly carried out in four separate debits, amounting to a total loss of ₹6,02,566. Upon realising the fraud, the judge immediately contacted the bank’s official customer care number and requested that the credit card be blocked to prevent further misuse.

The judge also reached out to the national cybercrime helpline and filed a complaint through the online cybercrime reporting portal before approaching the local police station.

Following the complaint, the Cuffe Parade Police Station registered a First Information Report against unidentified individuals.

The case has been booked under Sections 66, 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act, 2000, which deal with identity theft, cheating by personation using computer resources and related cyber offences. Additionally, provisions under Sections 3(5), 318(4) and 319(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 concerning cheating and impersonation have also been invoked.

Authorities are currently investigating the matter to identify the persons responsible for the fraud.