A 32-year-old woman from Andheri, Nidhi Bhuta, fell prey to a cunning cyber scam that cost her ₹6.42 lakh. It began when she was supposed to receive ₹200 in Paytm from her company but failed to find the transaction in her account. In her quest for help, she found a helpline number on Google, where an unknown caller duped her into upgrading her Paytm App and downloading an app called ‘Rusk Desk Remote Desktop’ to supposedly fix the problem1.
The fraudster guided Bhuta to transfer her money to an account, ostensibly for the purpose of troubleshooting. Unbeknownst to her, this was a setup for the scam. Shortly after making the transfer, she discovered that ₹6.42 lakh had been siphoned off from her account in 11 transactions1.
This unfortunate incident serves as a stark reminder of the rising number of cyber frauds. However, it’s worth noting that such scams can be effectively thwarted using reliable platforms like Castler Escrow.
Had Bhuta used Castler Escrow, the scam could have been prevented in the following ways:
Third-party verification: Castler Escrow acts as a neutral third-party that holds and regulates payment of the funds required for two parties involved in a transaction. It helps in reducing the risk of fraud by holding funds until both parties have fulfilled their contractual requirements.
Controlled transactions: With Castler, the money would have been kept in a secure escrow account until the completion of the agreed-upon service. The fraudster would not have been able to access the funds without Bhuta’s approval, which would be dependent on the successful resolution of her Paytm issue.
In an era where online transactions are increasingly common, it’s crucial to utilize secure platforms like Castler Escrow to safeguard against potential cyber fraud. It’s our collective responsibility to stay informed and vigilant to prevent such unfortunate incidents in the future.
