Woman duped of Rs 2.53 lakh while booking doctor's appointment

Lucknow: In a shocking incident, a woman trying to book a doctor’s appointment for a relative was allegedly duped of Rs 2.53 lakh after cyber fraudsters reportedly used a fake hospital-service application to gain access to the transaction process.

Ashiana police have registered an FIR following her complaint and launched an investigation into the suspected cyber fraud. 

The incident occurred on August 29 when the woman attempted to arrange an appointment at Health City Hospital in Gomti Nagar for her 68-year-old relative. She was allegedly directed to a mobile number for assistance with the booking. 

According to her complaint, she received a call from her relative around 8 am, asking her to contact a mobile number for the appointment. When she called the number, the person on the other end allegedly asked her to download an application named ‘hospital service.apk’.

After installing the application, she was allegedly asked to enter the patient’s details and make a nominal payment of Rs 5. She attempted the payment through Google Pay linked to her ICICI Bank account, but the transaction failed. 

The caller then allegedly asked her to contact another number and remain connected on the call. She stayed on the call for about five minutes before becoming suspicious and disconnecting.

According to Hindustan Times, she later checked the SMS alerts on her phone and found that two transactions of Rs 1,26,900 each had been carried out without her authorisation through her ICICI Bank credit card. The two transactions resulted in a total loss of Rs 2,53,800.

After discovering the fraud, she contacted the cybercrime helpline 1930 and reported the incident. Ashiana police have since registered an FIR based on her complaint, and an investigation is underway to trace those involved in the alleged fraud and the unauthorised transactions.

The case highlights the risk of using mobile numbers provided through unofficial channels for medical appointments. Fraudsters can exploit the urgency and familiarity associated with healthcare services to persuade people to install unfamiliar applications or make seemingly insignificant payments.

Police have advised people to verify appointment-related contact details directly through a hospital’s official channels and avoid installing APK files or making payments through applications or links sent by unknown callers.