Mumbai: Cybercriminals are adopting increasingly deceptive tactics and the latest trend involves using photographs of prominent political leaders to trap unsuspecting citizens. In a recent case from Mahim, scammers used a fake Facebook advertisement featuring Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s photograph to cheat a senior citizen of ₹1.47 crore under the pretext of profitable share trading.
The Central Region Cyber Police station has registered an FIR and begun an investigation.
According to Mumbai Cyber police, on 1 October 2025, the victim came across an online advertisement claiming that an investment of just ₹21,000 could yield returns of up to ₹60,000. The ad prominently displayed a photograph of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, giving it a sense of credibility.
Tempted by the offer, the senior citizen clicked the link and entered his details. Shortly afterward, he received a WhatsApp call from a woman identifying herself as Meenakshi, claiming to be a representative of Upstox Securities.
She instructed him to open an account on a fake trading website and invest ₹1,000. Within minutes, the platform showed a profit of ₹108, building trust.
Following this, two more women Smita Bhagat and Nazia contacted the victim using foreign numbers. They introduced themselves as representatives of SBI Wealth Mindset and a company named Svekza. Over time, the trio convinced the senior citizen to invest a total of ₹1.47 crore.
The scammers even created a fake virtual dashboard showing his account balance as ₹6,02,39,898 combining investments and supposed profits to keep him hooked.
When the victim finally attempted to withdraw his funds, Meenakshi demanded a guarantee fee of ₹90 lakh for processing the withdrawal. This raised suspicion, and the senior citizen realised he had been duped.
Third such case in two weeks : This is the third case in two weeks where fraudsters have used Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman’s photo to lure victims into fraudulent investment schemes. Similar cases were recently reported in Pune and Bengaluru. Cybercriminals have previously impersonated senior IPS officers like Vishwas Nangre Patil and Ravindra Singhal to carry out frauds. Mumbai Cyber Cell has urged citizens to be cautious of online investment schemes, especially those using photographs of ministers, celebrities, or senior police officers.
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