Representative image for financial fraud.
Credit: iStock Photo
Mangaluru: The director of Summer Sands Beach Resort at Ullal has filed a complaint to the Mangaluru city CEN station alleging large-scale online fraud through a fake website impersonating the resort and cheating unsuspecting tourists.
According to the complaint, the complainant has been serving as the director of Summer Sands Beach Resort for the past seven years. The resort officially operates through its website www.summersands.in . The resort receives several tourists daily, many of whom book rooms in advance using the official website, email addresses, or phone numbers. However, on November 10, 2025, unidentified persons allegedly gained unauthorised access to the resort’s official Google Business profile. Despite repeated attempts to reclaim access, Google reportedly informed the complainant that “this business profile has already been claimed.”
The issue escalated further on January 11, 2026, when the complainant discovered that unknown persons had created a fake website named www.summersandresort.com closely resembling the official site. Using this fake website, fraudsters allegedly lured innocent tourists and members of the public, directing them to contact a WhatsApp number. Victims were then asked to transfer advance booking amounts to various bank accounts and QR codes under the pretext of room reservations, resulting in online financial fraud.
The scam came to light after several tourists and members of the public contacted the resort directly to complain about being cheated. Upon learning about the fraud, the complainant immediately posted a public warning on the resort’s official website, urging people not to make any payments and alerting them to the ongoing scam.
The complainant has urged the authorities to take strict legal action against those responsible for creating the fake website in the name of the resort and to ensure justice.