Noida: A 57-year-old woman from Sector 41 allegedly lost nearly Rs 1 crore after being duped by cybercriminals who lured her into a fraudulent share market investment scheme, police said Wednesday. The suspects allegedly contacted the woman through social media and persuaded her to invest through a trading application promising high returns.The woman, a homemaker whose husband is retired from a private company, initially invested a small amount after being approached by the suspects. According to police, she was shown purported profits on the trading application, which convinced her that the investment was genuine.Police said the woman subsequently transferred nearly Rs 1 crore to different bank accounts provided by the suspects between Aug 25 and Sept 29, 2026.“Cybercriminals approached the victim through a social media platform and lured her into a trap of share market investment. The fraudsters promised her high returns if she started investing through their application,” said a police officer involved in the investigation.Investigators said the suspects used multiple unidentified mobile numbers to remain in contact with the woman and provided her with several bank account details for transferring the money. The transactions continued after the woman was shown increasing profits on the purported trading platform.However, when she attempted to withdraw the profits in late September, the suspects allegedly told her that she needed to deposit more money to complete the withdrawal process. They subsequently demanded additional payments under various pretexts.The woman then approached National Cybercrime Reporting Portal, following which her complaint was transferred to Noida Cybercrime Branch for investigation. Police have registered a case against the unidentified suspects under relevant sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including cheating and cheating by personation, along with provisions of Information Technology Act.Police said an investigation is underway to identify the suspects, trace the accounts through which the money was transferred and recover the defrauded amount.The cybercrime branch has advised people to exercise caution while responding to investment offers received through social media platforms. Police urged investors to verify trading applications, bank accounts and investment schemes through official sources before transferring money and warned that promises of unusually high or guaranteed returns are often a red flag for fraud.
