Chandigarh man loses ₹8 lakh in fake PNG connection KYC scam

A 69-year-old Chandigarh resident of Sector 33D lost nearly ₹7.94 lakh after cyber fraudsters impersonating Adani Gas employees tricked him into downloading a malicious APK file.

The victim had applied for a piped natural gas (PNG) connection from Adani Gas about three months ago; the scammers phoned him on Tuesday, claiming his bank account needed to be linked to activate the connection.

The fraudsters sent a WhatsApp APK file titled 'Adani Gas Bill Update' and persuaded him to pay a ₹10 verification fee via Google Pay, during which he shared his HDFC Bank debit card details.

After the victim downloaded the malicious app, his phone became unresponsive and repeatedly restarted; the fraudsters gained remote access and siphoned off nearly ₹8 lakh from his HDFC Bank and Punjab National Bank accounts.

An FIR was registered at Sector 17 cyber police station under sections 318(4), 319(2), 336(3), 338, 340(2), and 61(2) of BNS.