Hacked Friend's Account Asking for Urgent Money over the phone

How it looks over the phone, the red flags and what to do.

Callers pretend to be bank staff, police, a courier, a telecom officer or a relative, and they try to keep you on the line while you act. Hacked Friend's Account Asking for Urgent Money is one of the ways this shows up: A message from a friend's hacked or cloned profile asks for urgent UPI money. Learn how to check whether the person is really your friend.

What hacked friend's account asking for urgent money looks like over the phone

• A second "senior officer" who takes over the call.
• An unknown or international number, or a number that looks like a real office.
• A calm, official voice that already knows your name or the last digits of your card.

The scammer either takes over a friend's account through a stolen password or fake login page, or he makes a clone profile using public photos and the same name. He then messages the friend list. Because everything on the profile looks familiar, including old posts and mutual friends, people do not think of a trick. The first message is brief and casual, often 'busy?' or 'can you help me?'

Red flags to check on the phone call

• A friend asks for money urgently by chat but refuses a voice or video call.
• The UPI name or ID belongs to someone other than your friend.
• The message is short, hurried and a little out of character.
• You are asked to keep it secret.
• The caller wants you to install an app to "fix" something.
• The caller asks for an OTP, UPI PIN, card PIN or CVV.

What to do

1. Call your friend on his normal number before sending anything.
2. Ask a private question that only he would know.
3. Check the profile handle carefully for small differences.
4. If you already installed an app on the call, uninstall it and switch on airplane mode, then call your bank at once.
5. Tell a family member and report the number on the Sanchar Saathi portal (Chakshu facility).
6. Hang up. A real bank or office will not mind that you call them back.

Report the number on the Sanchar Saathi portal (Chakshu facility). If money moved, call 1930 immediately.

If money or a code is already gone

1. Call 1930 and report at cybercrime.gov.in with the UPI reference.
2. Tell your bank through its official app and note the payee name.
3. Tell your real friend so he can secure his account and warn others.
4. Save screenshots of the chat and the profile before the account is removed.

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

Money Shield in Safeavio Sentinel has trusted contacts and a family code word, so you can test a request by asking for the word before sending money. Paste the chat into Scam check to see the reasons it looks risky, such as urgency and a secret request. Safeavio cannot confirm whether a social media account has been hacked, and cannot get money back once sent.

Full guide: Hacked Friend's Account Asking for Urgent Money: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: social media, WhatsApp, SMS.

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