PM-Kisan Status Update APK Scam
A WhatsApp message says your PM-Kisan instalment is stuck and asks you to install an APK. See how the file empties bank accounts and what to do.
Farmers and their families receive a WhatsApp message in a village group: the next PM-Kisan instalment is on hold until a 'status update' file is installed. The file is an APK sent outside any app store. Once installed it can read SMS, show fake login screens and move money from the bank account linked to the phone. It travels fast because it arrives from a known neighbour whose phone was already infected.
How the scam works
The scammer starts from an infected phone in a local WhatsApp group, so the message comes from a name you know. It carries a file called something like PM_Kisan_Status.apk and a line saying the instalment will be cancelled without it. Many people tap it because the scheme is real and the money matters to them.
The pressure is a deadline and a loss: 'only 24 hours left, your Rs 2,000 will be stopped'. After installing, the app asks for SMS, notification and accessibility permissions, saying they are needed to 'verify the farmer'. Granting them gives the app control of the screen and every OTP that arrives. Repeated reminders follow in the same group, each one slightly angrier than the last.
The payoff is quiet. The app forwards bank SMS and OTPs to the scammer, who logs in to net banking or UPI and moves money out. The same app then messages every contact in the phone with the same file, which is how one infected phone becomes a whole village group of victims within days.
An example of what you may see
Example message (invented): 'Kisan bhai, PM-Kisan ki next kisht ruki hui hai. Jaldi se yeh PM_Kisan_Status.apk install karein aur apna status update karein, warna paisa band ho jayega. Install karte hi Allow dabana.' The group has 140 members and the sender is a neighbour who was added months ago. A second message an hour later says: 'Last chance, 200 farmers have already updated, do not be left out.' The reminder is posted by the same neighbour's number.
This example is written for illustration. Real messages change their wording, names and links all the time.
Red flags
- A government scheme message arrives as an APK file, not as a link to an official site.
- The file must be installed from outside the Play Store.
- The app asks for SMS, notification or accessibility access to 'verify' you.
- It comes with a short deadline and the threat of losing a payment.
- The sender is a contact who normally never shares government schemes.
- The message is forwarded unchanged to many groups at once.
What to do right now
- Do not open or install the APK, even if a known person sent it.
- Check instalment status only on the official PM-Kisan portal or app, typed by hand.
- Tell the sender their phone may be infected and ask them to warn the group.
- Delete the file and leave the group chat if it keeps appearing.
- Report the number on the Sanchar Saathi portal using the Chakshu facility.
If you already paid or shared a code
- If the app was installed and money moved, call 1930 at once and report at cybercrime.gov.in.
- Call your bank on the number printed on your passbook and ask to freeze net banking and UPI.
- Uninstall the app in Settings, or take the phone to a repair shop for a factory reset.
- Change all banking and email passwords from a different, clean phone.
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 can check the message text you paste and the link behind it, and the Phone scan lists apps that came from outside a store and the permissions they hold. That can show you an installed 'status' app asking for SMS and accessibility access. It does not read your messages on its own and cannot undo a transfer already made, so the first rule stays the same: never install an APK that arrives on WhatsApp.
Check it before you tap or pay
Safeavio Sentinel is a made-in-India Android app: paste a message or link, or scan a QR code, and get a plain verdict with the reasons. It helps you spot a scam; it does not promise to stop every one.
Download for AndroidWhat the app does
Google Play listing: coming soon. Today the signed APK is on safeavio.com/download. Android 7.0 or later.
Questions people ask
Does PM-Kisan ever ask me to install an APK?
No. Scheme updates are made on the official portal or the government's own app from a store. A file sent on WhatsApp is not an official channel, and no instalment depends on installing one. Treat any such file as malware until proven otherwise.
The message came from my own relative. Is it still unsafe?
Yes. These files spread by sending themselves from infected phones, so the sender is often a victim who does not know. Call the person on a known number and ask whether they really sent it before doing anything.
Can the scammer read my OTP after I install it?
If you allowed SMS access, yes. The app can forward every message, including bank OTPs. That is why you should uninstall it quickly, call the bank, and change passwords from a clean phone. Do not wait to see what happens.