A cyber fraud network, responsible for siphoning off over Rs 7.34 crore through a cooperative bank’s core banking system vulnerability, has been exposed. The Cyber Centre of Excellence in Gandhinagar apprehended four individuals in Gujarat and Maharashtra in connection with this crime. The hacking involved setting up bank accounts to facilitate the illegal transfer and withdrawal of funds through a complex network.
The arrests were made following a detailed investigation into the breach of The Bhavnagar District Co-operative Bank Ltd.’s computer system. Three suspects were detained in Ahmedabad, while one was captured in Maharashtra. The accused, identified as Adnan Sheikh, Rubina Sheikh, Sushilkumar Meghwal, and Kishor Prabhakar Pardeshi, were found with incriminating evidence on their mobile phones, leading to the discovery of 42 additional linked bank accounts.
Authorities revealed that the cybercrime syndicate, involved in multiple cases nationwide, had defrauded an estimated Rs 4 crore through various illicit activities. Exploiting a vulnerability in the bank’s Core Banking Service software, the accused manipulated older accounts in the Bhavnagar bank, amassing a virtual balance exceeding Rs 7 crore, which was then dispersed across 135 different accounts.
In response to this alarming discovery, officials have frozen Rs 2.04 crore of the stolen funds and confiscated four mobile phones. They cautioned the public against sharing bank account details or SIM cards with unknown individuals and urged reporting any suspicious activities to law enforcement. Investigations are ongoing to uncover the full extent of this fraudulent operation.
