Bengaluru woman blackmailed after downloading loan app

Bengaluru: A 34-year-old woman endured threats and blackmail from agents associated with an instant loan app.

The incident surfaced on February 5, following a complaint filed by Karishma S (name changed), residing near Old Airport Road in eastern Bengaluru.

Karishma recounted that she downloaded an instant loan app named 'Cash Box' on January 31 via a link on a social media platform, with no intention of seeking a loan.

On the same day, the victim alleged in her police complaint that Rs 6,000 was deposited into her bank account without her consent.

Subsequently, the harassment ensued.

Karishma claimed to have received threatening calls from two phone numbers on February 5. The caller purportedly demanded repayment of the loan amount, or else threatened to circulate explicit photographs to the contacts in her phonebook.

Despite Karishma's fearful compliance in repaying the loan amount, which she did not avail, the calls persisted, and her "morphed" explicit photographs were shared with certain family contacts, a cybercrime investigator told DH.

'Be cautious'

The investigator noted that soon after installing 'Cash Box', the victim consented to multiple prompts granting the app and its developers access to her phone gallery, contacts list, and other files.

"Without such permission, the likelihood of the loan app's operators gaining access to the victim's personal data is minimal," the official stated. "However, these apps are designed to require permission for functionality. It appears that the victim also entered her bank details into the app, enabling automatic crediting of the sum by the loan app operators."

The investigator also revealed that the calls likely originated from outside India and were made using Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

The investigator cautioned the public against downloading unsolicited applications via unverified links on social media platforms, particularly those promising instant loans.

A case has been registered at the East Cyber Economic and Narcotics Crime (CEN) police station under sections 66C (punishment for identity theft) and 66D (punishment for cheating by personation using computer resources) of the Information Technology (IT) Act.