Flat Rental Token Advance Scam through an app

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

The app is the scammer's way in: it can read what is on the screen, collect contacts and push you to pay. Flat Rental Token Advance Scam is one of the ways this shows up: A too-cheap flat or PG listing asks for a token to hold it, then the 'owner' disappears. See how rental token scams work and how to stay safe.

What flat rental token advance scam looks like through an app

• A "KYC", "challan" or "bank rewards" app from a link.
• An .apk file sent on WhatsApp or by SMS.
• An app outside the official store that asks for many permissions.

The scammer copies pictures and descriptions from a genuine listing and re-posts them with a lower rent on classified apps, social groups and brokers' pages. He claims to be an NRI, a transferred officer or a busy executive, which neatly explains why he cannot meet. He replies instantly and shares a neat agreement template, so the deal looks well organised.

Red flags to check on the app

• The rent is far below similar flats in the same area.
• The owner is abroad or elsewhere and refuses a video call showing the flat live.
• You must pay a token or deposit before you see the property.
• The UPI name does not match the owner's name on the listing.
• It asks you to turn off Play Protect.
• The app does not come from the official store listing of the company.

What to do

1. Visit the flat in person and meet the owner or his real representative before paying anything.
2. Ask for a live video tour that shows today's date or a specific object that you request.
3. Check that the person you pay matches the owner's name on the property papers.
4. Change the passwords of your bank and email from a clean device if the app had access.
5. Run a phone scan (Safeavio Sentinel lists risky apps and settings).
6. Call your bank, and call 1930 if money moved.

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 and report at cybercrime.gov.in with the UPI reference.
2. Tell your bank through the official app and give the payee's details.
3. Save the listing, chat, agreement image and call log before they disappear.
4. Do not pay a second deposit to 'fix' the first, however convincing the explanation.

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

Money Shield in Safeavio Sentinel includes a 'Verify before you pay' checklist that asks whether you have seen the property and whether the receiver's name matches the owner. If the listing sends a payment QR code or link, QR check and Link check help you see where it goes before you pay. These tools help you slow down; they cannot verify ownership of a flat and cannot recover a token already paid.

Full guide: Flat Rental Token Advance Scam: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: WhatsApp, phone call, social media.

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