Fake boss orders urgent transfer, Gujarat man sends Rs 3 crore to fraudsters

The Ahmedabad police froze Rs 2.94 crore of the stolen amount and returned Rs 2.88 crore to the company.

According to investigators, the attack typically begins when a target opens a malicious file or link by accident Ahmedabad fraudAn Ahmedabad employee was allegedly tricked into transferring Rs 3 crore (File photo).

An employee of an Ahmedabad-based firm was allegedly defrauded of Rs 3 crore last week after cybercriminals impersonating his employer instructed him to make an urgent fund transfer. Prompt action by the police and the national helpline enabled authorities to trace and freeze Rs 2.94 crore of the stolen amount.

The modus operandi, known as a ‘boss scam’, exploits employees’ tendency to follow workplace instructions without verifying or requesting written authorisation.

On September 18, the complainant was in his office when he received messages from an unknown phone number displaying his boss’s photograph. The impersonator allegedly directed the employee to transfer Rs 3 crore from the company’s bank account to another specified account.

“It was only when the employee had transferred the amount, and he sent the confirmation of payment on his boss’s actual phone, that he realised he had been conned,” said DySP Tapansinh Dodia, Deputy Superintendent (DySP), of the Ahmedabad Rural police.

Following his employer’s instructions, the employee immediately reported the incident to the Changodar police station. Officers helped him contact the 1930 helpline to initiate swift action to freeze the beneficiary accounts. However, cybercriminals had already withdrawn Rs 6 lakh from a bank in Jammu and Kashmir.

Following a court order obtained on Tuesday, the police arranged the return of Rs 2.88 crore to the company. The remaining Rs 6 lakh currently frozen in another account will be released later, according to DySP Dodia.

Brendan Dabhi works with The Indian Express, focusing his comprehensive reporting primarily on Gujarat. He covers the region's most critical social, legal, and administrative sectors, notably specializing at the intersection of health, social justice, and disasters. Expertise Health and Public Policy: He has deep expertise in healthcare issues, including rare diseases, Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), the complex logistics of organ transplants, and public health challenges like drug-resistant TB and heat health surveillance. His on-ground reporting during the COVID-19 pandemic and Mucormycosis was critical in exposing healthcare challenges faced by marginalized communities in Gujarat. Social Justice and Legal Administration: He reports on the functioning of the legal and police system, including the impact of judicial philosophy, forensics and crucial administrative reforms (. He covers major surveillance and crackdown exercises by the Gujarat police and security on the international border. Disaster and Crisis Management: His work closely tracks how government and civic bodies respond to large-scale crises, providing essential coverage on the human and administrative fallout of disasters including cyclones, floods, conflict, major fires and reported extensively on the AI 171 crash in Ahmedabad. Civic Infrastructure and Governance: Provides timely reports on critical civic failures,  including large scale infrastructure projects by the railways and civic bodies, as well as  the enforcement of municipal regulations and their impact on residents and heritage. ... Read More

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