Woman Engineer Loses Lakhs in 5G SIM Upgrade Scam

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Noida Woman Loses ₹24.86 Lakh in Sophisticated 5G SIM Swap Scam

A female IT engineer in Noida has fallen victim to a sophisticated 5G SIM swap scam, resulting in a significant financial loss of ₹24.86 lakh.

The Scam

According to the complaint filed by the victim, she received a call on February 4 from an individual claiming to be a telecom company executive, offering to upgrade her 4G SIM to 5G.

The victim agreed, and the fraudsters initiated an eSIM activation request on her number without obtaining her OTP or link verification. As a result, her mobile network was immediately disabled.

The scammers then contacted the victim from multiple numbers, claiming that her phone would remain inactive for 24 hours as part of the 5G upgrade process.

Unauthorized Transactions

Upon regaining access to her phone, the victim checked her bank accounts and credit card and discovered multiple unauthorized transactions. Funds had been withdrawn from her Axis Bank and ICICI Bank accounts, and her Axis Bank credit card was also used.

The scammers had routed part of the money through Amazon, Freecharge, and PhonePe.

Investigation

The incident has been reported to the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP), and cyber police are investigating the matter.

Officials have described the incident as a classic SIM swap fraud, where criminals take control of a victim’s mobile number to bypass OTP-based banking security.

Cybercrime authorities have warned that telecom operators do not upgrade SIMs through unsolicited calls and that eSIM activation always requires OTP authentication.

Precautions

Citizens have been advised to verify any SIM-related request only through authorized stores or official apps.

If a mobile network suddenly stops working without reason, users should immediately contact their telecom provider and bank, temporarily block net banking and UPI services, and report the matter on the 1930 cyber helpline.