“Sharing the details on social media, Maran said ₹99,999 was “stolen” from his Axis Bank personal savings account through a net banking transfer via “IDFC First Bank-Billdesk". The transaction, which was not initiated by him, bypassed “all normal safety protocols", he added.
An OTP, the standard protocol for such transactions, was neither generated nor received on the mobile number linked to the bank account, Maran stated in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Instead, a call was made to the account’s joint holder - my wife’s number and the fraudsters had the gall to ask if the transaction had taken place. They pretended to be from the bank but had @cbic_india on their display picture. This confirmed my suspicions and I immediately proceeded to block all activities on my account (sic)," he added."
““Axis Bank was clueless as to how the attack had happened nor could they give any solid explanation for why the OTP was not required from my number for the transaction to take place,” Maran added.”
“Synopsis
Ritesh Bhatia, a cybercrime investigator and cybersecurity consultant, warns that biometrics linked to Aadhaar cards can be easily hacked and stolen. Criminals are using high-resolution cameras to capture fingerprints from various sources, such as property registrations and SIM card registrations, and selling them to other cybercriminals. With access to the Aadhaar number and bank details, these criminals can withdraw money using Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AEPS) micro ATMs.”
I have locked my biometric. But it’s a bit of a hassle at times. There was this time when I wanted to get a SIM card. But I couldn’t get it as I was not getting the OTP for unlocking the biometric.
Also, let’s say you lost your mobile and want to get a replacement SIM. This is a deadlock. Without the SIM, you can’t get the SMS for unlocking. And without the biometrics, you won’t get the SIM.
@alexnazy I understand, but what is the likelihood of such incidents compared to your safety? On the app, there are only two steps and a validation code to enter.
I have been following this since 2019 and believe me, it is very simple; you just need to develop muscle memory.
What I learned from my experience is that
Locking your Aadhaar biometrics is super easy and unlocking the same is a little bit hard sometimes.
Whenever we met a situation where it needs to unlocked (eg: PDS, KYC purpose) either the website or the app does not function (it becomes not reachable or get some error)
One solution which I am planning to follow in the future is to pre-plan the usage of biometrics.
So if I am planning to get a new SIM card, I need to activate the biometrics some hours before I go to the showroom.
But one major problem with me is that after I use the biometrics, I forget to relock it.
I guess mAadhaar app needs an auto lock feature, which would automatically lock the biometrics after say 1 day. So that no compromise happens because of bad memory.
You can find a feature on the website that allows you to temporarily enable your biometrics. I believe the system automatically locks it after 5 minutes.
I haven’t used their mAadhaar app in a while, so I’m uncertain about whether this feature is available on the app.
Saying again what I have said earlier “Never trust this site”
I’m attaching the various error messages I received within a span of 5 minutes, while attempting to log in, as I wanted to capture a screenshot of that temporary unlocking feature.
I believe they are attempting a workaround by closing an old sim and generating a new one [Target Pressure - especially when competing with a multi-million dollar chest].
Because why should you request biometrics again if you already have them? It’s not in TRAI guideline.
“First of all, people should not believe information that is communicated over the phone by a random caller or a message on WhatsApp. One should use discretion and common sense, vet every single call/message from numbers that are not from your caller list,” said a senior police officer. “The saddest part is that the maximum number of people who fall prey to such fraudsters are highly educated as well as elderly people. People may be educated, but not wise. People should not fall prey to greed. Then 80 per cent of the cases will not take place.”
