A major cyber fraud case has come to light in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur district, where unknown cybercriminals allegedly impersonated the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a private company and cheated it of ₹80.50 lakh. According to police, the fraudsters misused the CEO’s name and WhatsApp display picture to send urgent payment instructions to the company’s accounts manager, leading to the transfer of funds to two separate bank accounts through RTGS.
Police said the complainant, Prashant Ravindra Patil, works as an Accounts Manager at a private automobile company. Preliminary investigations revealed that the cybercriminals used a mobile number to create a fake WhatsApp account resembling the company’s CEO by using the CEO’s name and profile picture. Posing as the CEO, they sent messages directing the accounts manager to make urgent business-related payments.
Believing the instructions to be genuine, the accounts manager transferred ₹32 lakh to a bank account in Gujarat and ₹48.50 lakh to another account in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, through RTGS. The fraud came to light only after the actual circumstances were verified, following which the company lodged a complaint with the police.
After receiving the complaint, police registered a cyber fraud case against unidentified accused persons and immediately launched an investigation. Authorities have initiated the process of freezing the bank accounts that received the money to prevent further withdrawal of the funds. Investigators are examining bank transactions, the mobile number used in the scam, digital evidence and other technical aspects of the case.
Preliminary findings suggest that the fraudsters exploited WhatsApp impersonation techniques to manipulate the company’s internal communication system. Cybersecurity experts say that in such scams, criminals misuse the identity, name and profile picture of senior executives to pressure employees into making urgent financial transfers without completing standard verification procedures.
Renowned cybercrime expert and former IPS officer Prof. Triveni Singh said that every organisation should implement a multi-level verification process before approving high-value financial transactions. He advised companies never to authorise payments solely on the basis of WhatsApp messages, display pictures or account names. Instead, employees should always verify payment instructions by directly contacting the concerned official through an authenticated phone number before processing any transaction.
Police have urged companies and the public to independently verify all financial instructions received through digital communication channels, avoid acting immediately on suspicious messages, and promptly report any suspected cyber fraud to the authorities. The investigation is ongoing.
