UPI AutoPay Mandate 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. UPI AutoPay Mandate Scam is one of the ways this shows up: You approve a request that looks harmless, but it sets up a recurring UPI mandate that lets a scammer pull money again and again.

What upi autopay mandate scam looks like through an app

• An app outside the official store that asks for many permissions.
• A screen-sharing or remote-control app that a caller asks you to install.
• A loan app that asks for contacts and photos.

The scammer contacts you with a prize, a free trial or a discount. To claim it, you are asked to 'activate' it using a request in your UPI app. The request is called a mandate or autopay request, but the notification text is short and the amount may be low, such as Re 1 or Rs 5, so it does not look risky.

Red flags to check on the app

• An 'activation' request arrives for a prize or free offer.
• The request is described as a mandate, autopay or recurring payment.
• The charged amount is tiny but a higher maximum appears in the details.
• The caller wants you to approve while they stay on the line.
• It asks for accessibility, screen overlay, SMS or contacts without a clear reason.
• You were told to install it by a stranger or a caller.

What to do

1. Decline the request and read every line before you approve any mandate.
2. Open your UPI app and check the section that lists autopay or mandates.
3. Cancel any mandate you do not recognise.
4. Run a phone scan (Safeavio Sentinel lists risky apps and settings).
5. Call your bank, and call 1930 if money moved.
6. Do not install it. If it is installed, uninstall it now (Settings, Apps).

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. Cancel the mandate in your UPI app and note the merchant name and ID.
2. Call 1930 and give the transaction details.
3. Tell your bank through the number on your card or passbook to block further pulls.
4. Report at https://cybercrime.gov.in with screenshots of the request.

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

Safeavio's Money Shield checklist reminds you to read the screen before you pay, and the scam check can review a message that promises a free prize or activation and show the pressure signals. It cannot see inside your UPI app or cancel a mandate for you, so check the autopay list there yourself. Review the autopay list yourself and cancel anything you do not know.

Full guide: UPI AutoPay Mandate Scam: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: SMS, WhatsApp, phone call.

Questions