FASTag KYC Update and Recharge Scam through an app

How it looks through an app, the red flags and what to do.

A fake app can be installed from a link, from a file sent on chat or even from a lookalike listing. Once on your phone it can ask for powerful permissions. FASTag KYC Update and Recharge Scam is one of the ways this shows up: A text says your FASTag will be blocked without a KYC update or recharge and gives a number or link. The target is your card and UPI details.

What fastag kyc update and recharge scam looks like through an app

• A screen-sharing or remote-control app that a caller asks you to install.
• A loan app that asks for contacts and photos.
• A "KYC", "challan" or "bank rewards" app from a link.

The scammer sends the message to many mobile numbers, since most car owners have a tag and many are linked to a bank account. The text names a tag issuer or a transport body and says the tag will be deactivated at midnight. Some people search online for a customer care number after a failed payment at a toll and land on a fake listing that looks real.

Red flags to check on the app

• It says the tag will be blocked tonight.
• It gives a mobile number or link for support.
• It asks for a recharge through a link or UPI request.
• The caller asks you to install a support app.
• It has few or odd reviews, or a name with spelling changes.
• It asks you to turn off Play Protect.

What to do

1. Do not use the link or call the number in the message.
2. Check your tag balance and KYC inside the issuer's own app or the official bank app.
3. Recharge only through that official app or the bank's official site.
4. Open Settings and check Accessibility, Device admin apps and Install unknown apps for anything you do not recognise.
5. Change the passwords of your bank and email from a clean device if the app had access.
6. Run a phone scan (Safeavio Sentinel lists risky apps and settings).

Report the fake app to the store it came from and, if money moved, call 1930 and report at cybercrime.gov.in.

If money or a code is already gone

1. Call 1930 quickly with the payment details.
2. Ask your bank through the number on your card to block the card and UPI if you shared details.
3. If you installed an app, uninstall it and review permissions.
4. File a complaint on cybercrime.gov.in with the message and call time.

National Cyber Crime Helpline: 1930; report at cybercrime.gov.in.

Safeavio Sentinel's scam check reads a pasted text and notes the night-time deadline, the support number and the recharge demand. The link check looks at the address for lookalike and shortened-link patterns. The phone scan can list installed remote-support style apps and risky permissions. It cannot see your tag balance or issuer records, and the check is only as good as the text or link you give it.

Full guide: FASTag KYC Update and Recharge Scam: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: SMS, phone call.

Questions