Mumbai Police have arrested an Indore graphic designer accused of supplying malicious APKs linked to nearly ₹150 crore in fraud.
Who Is the Arrested Graphic Designer?
The Mumbai Crime Branch’s Property Cell arrested 36-year-old Pankaj Gupta, a resident of Indore, for allegedly creating and supplying 2,805 malicious Android application files to cybercrime networks operating from Bihar and Jharkhand.
According to police, Gupta had narrowly escaped a digital arrest scam five years ago. He subsequently contacted fraudsters and allegedly began supplying customised APK files capable of compromising smartphones and allowing remote access. Investigators said Gupta possessed coding skills and developed applications designed to imitate legitimate government and utility services.
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How Did the Malicious APKs Work?
The applications allegedly impersonated services involving senior citizen card verification, e-traffic challans, pension verification, credit card updates and PM Kisan Yojana.
Once installed, the malicious files could enable fraudsters to steal sensitive information, intercept one-time passwords and remotely control victims’ phones.
Police said Gupta rented servers from several companies to store information collected through the applications. He allegedly sold each malicious file to local calling groups for ₹20,000 to ₹25,000. The cybercrime networks reportedly used leaked information from banks and institutions to approach potential victims.
How Did Police Trace the Accused?
The investigation began after a senior citizen from Mumbai’s Byculla area lodged a complaint on August 13. The complainant alleged that a caller impersonating a nationalised bank representative offered assistance with a Senior Citizen Card scheme. After the victim clicked an APK link received through a text message, ₹5.62 lakh was fraudulently debited from his bank account.
Technical analysis conducted by the Mumbai Crime Branch subsequently led investigators to Gupta in Indore.
How Many People Were Targeted?
Police said the cybercrime network allegedly targeted 9,673 individuals across India, causing financial losses estimated at nearly ₹150 crore. Investigators identified 1,074 complaints registered on the national cybercrime portal, including 142 from Maharashtra and 36 from Mumbai. Authorities are continuing their investigation into the wider network and the individuals allegedly operating the fraud at the local level.
The case highlights how applications disguised as routine government or banking services can be used to compromise smartphones and steal money. The alleged distribution of thousands of malicious APKs also shows how a single software supplier can support multiple cybercrime operations.
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