Thiruvananthapuram, March 10 The Kerala Police on Tuesday warned the public about a new cyber fraud in which scammers are allegedly using images of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in fake social media advertisements to trick people into making online payments.
According to a statement issued by the state police, misleading advertisements circulating on platforms such as Facebook claim that users can easily earn Rs 12,000 if they have the PhonePe app on their mobile phones.
The fraud begins when users click on the advertisement featuring the chief minister’s image, believing it to be genuine.
The link then automatically opens the PhonePe application on the user’s phone and displays a payment page showing an amount of Rs 1,499.
Victims, assuming the amount is a reward to be received, enter their UPI PIN.
However, the police clarified that the page is actually a "request payment" interface, and entering the PIN authorizes a transfer of Rs 1,499 from the user’s account to the fraudsters.
Authorities urged people to remain cautious about advertisements on social media that promise easy money or feature images of prominent personalities, noting that such campaigns are often part of cyber scams.
The police also reminded users that entering a UPI PIN is required only to send money and not to receive funds. People should carefully verify payment request pages and avoid clicking on suspicious links or buttons, the statement said.
The public has been advised to report suspicious advertisements immediately.
Victims of cyber fraud can contact the national cyber helpline at 1930 or file a complaint through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, the statement added.