Ahmedabad: A 55-year-old nursing staffer at Asarwa Civil Hospital lost Rs 7 lakh from her salary account in a cyberfraud after unknowingly downloading a malicious APK file sent via WhatsApp, stated a police complaint filed on Sunday.According to the complaint filed with the cybercrime police of the city, the victim, a resident of Naroda, maintained a salary account with Union Bank of India. On the morning of Oct 28, 2025, she noticed a message indicating her account balance was Rs 4 lakh, though she had around Rs 9 lakh. On checking further, multiple debit alerts were found on her phone.When she tried accessing the bank’s mobile application, it failed to open. She then visited the bank branch, where officials informed her that five IMPS transactions amounting to Rs 7 lakh were carried out between Oct 28 and 29, 2025, transferring money to different accounts.During inquiry, it emerged that two days prior to the fraud, she received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number with a file titled “RTO UPDATE YOUR CHALLAN2.apk”. After downloading and installing the file, fraudsters allegedly gained unauthorized access to her mobile phone, stole banking credentials and intercepted OTPs to execute the transactions without her knowledge.Following the incident, a complaint was registered through the cybercrime helpline and on the national portal. Police said an offence of cheating and identity theft was registered against unknown persons, including the sender of the APK file and the beneficiary account holders.
