Credit Card EMI Conversion Scam

A caller says your large card bill can be turned into zero-cost EMI and asks for an OTP, which approves a new purchase on your card.

After a big purchase, you may get a call offering to convert the card bill into easy EMIs at low or no interest. It sounds helpful and cards do offer such options. The scam asks for your card details and an OTP to 'register' the offer, and the OTP instead approves a fresh transaction on your card. The real conversion can be requested from the bank's app.

How the scam works

The scammer calls someone who has recently used a credit card for a large expense, often found through leaked data or a guess based on the festival season. They mention the bank by name, a nice-sounding rate and a short period, and say that they are doing a special drive for selected customers. They sound well informed and friendly, which lowers your guard.

To 'register' the EMI offer, they ask you to confirm the card number, expiry and CVV, and tell you that a code will arrive. In the background they make a purchase on a site that accepts the card, often for vouchers or electronics. The code that arrives is the OTP for that purchase, but they describe it as a registration code.

When you read out the code, the purchase goes through. The bill increases instead of dropping, and you may also get a message about a new EMI that you did not ask for. In some cases the scammer repeats the process with a second code to 'finish' the registration, so that the limit is used up. The bank treats the transactions as authorised because of the OTP.

An example of what you may see

Example only: 'Sir, I see that you made a large purchase last week. We have a special offer to convert your bill into 6 easy zero-cost EMIs. For registration I need your card number, expiry and the three digits at the back. A registration code will come to your phone, please read it out so that I can lock the offer today. The scheme ends this evening.' He avoids giving any reference.

This example is written for illustration. Real messages change their wording, names and links all the time.

Red flags

• A caller offers to convert your card bill into EMI.
• Your card number, CVV and a code are requested.
• The code is described as a registration code.
• A special drive for selected customers is mentioned.
• The offer ends today.
• The caller does not let you check in the bank's app.

What to do right now

1. End the call and share no card detail or code.
2. Look for EMI options inside your bank's official app.
3. Call the number on the back of your card if you want to know more.
4. Block the number and note the call time.
5. Keep alerts on for every card transaction.

If you already paid or shared a code

1. Call your bank on the number on your card and block the card immediately.
2. Call 1930 and report the transaction details and time.
3. Ask the bank to start a dispute for the purchase you did not make.
4. Report at https://cybercrime.gov.in with the call log and alerts.

National Cyber Crime Helpline: 1930. Report online at cybercrime.gov.in. Do it fast: the sooner your bank is told, the better the chance that money can be held.

Where this scam shows up

Read how it looks on each channel:

How Safeavio helps

Safeavio's Money Shield includes the rule that no OTP, PIN or CVV should be shared with anyone, including people who say they are from the bank. The scam check can review a follow-up SMS or link that you paste. It does not block calls by itself, so end the call and use the bank's app or the number on your card.

• Scam checks
• Identity protection

Questions people ask

Other scams in this group

Also known as: convert purchase to EMI call, card EMI offer fraud, card bill relief scam. More bank and card fraud