Sonbhadra (Uttar Pradesh): A cyber fraud investigation in Sonbhadra has uncovered a serious case of alleged misuse of a Common Service Centre (CSC) ID, leading to suspicious financial transactions and the freezing of a bank account linked to repeated fraud alerts from multiple states. Police have registered a case against former district manager Ashish Pandey following allegations that an inactive CSC login was misused without the knowledge of its original holder, triggering a chain of cross-state cyber alerts.
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According to officials, the complaint was filed by Prem Bahadur Yadav, a network field engineer posted at a district information office. He stated that he had originally created a CSC ID for personal use, but later faced technical issues with the login. In 2017, he handed over access credentials to Ashish Pandey, who was serving as the district manager at the time, for restoration and reactivation purposes. However, the complainant alleges that the ID was never returned and remained under unauthorized control.
Fraud Alerts From Gujarat and Haryana Trigger Scrutiny
The case came to light when the complainant began receiving notices from law enforcement agencies in different states, indicating suspicious transactions linked to his bank account. In January 2026, authorities in Gujarat’s Tapi district issued a notice after identifying a fraudulent credit of approximately ₹90,000 linked to his account. Following this, the bank flagged the account and placed restrictions on transactions.
A second alert arrived in April 2026 from cybercrime authorities in Haryana’s Bhiwani district. This time, another suspicious entry of around ₹95,000 was detected. With repeated flags from multiple jurisdictions, the bank escalated the matter and froze the account to prevent further suspected misuse. Combined, the questionable transactions amounted to approximately ₹1.85 lakh, raising concerns of systematic exploitation of digital credentials.
Police Examine Wider Misuse of CSC Credentials
Investigators believe that the CSC ID may have been used as part of a wider misuse network, potentially allowing unauthorized access to financial or service-related systems. Although the exact mechanism of fraud is still under examination, officials are probing whether the login was linked to the creation of fake accounts or routing of illicit funds through intermediaries.
A formal case has been registered based on the written complaint, and a detailed investigation is underway. Digital records, access logs, and banking trails are being examined to trace how the CSC credentials were used after being handed over. Authorities are also coordinating with cyber units in Gujarat and Haryana to map the flow of suspicious transactions.
The complainant has maintained that he had no involvement in the alleged fraudulent activity and was unaware of any misuse until the bank account restrictions and external notices were issued. He has demanded a full forensic audit of the CSC ID usage history since its reactivation request in 2017.
Probe Focuses on Digital Evidence and Cross-State Links
Such cases highlight the risks associated with shared or poorly managed digital service credentials, especially in government-linked platforms. Once access credentials fall into the wrong hands or remain unmonitored, they can potentially be exploited for financial fraud, identity misuse, or unauthorised service provisioning.
Authorities are now treating the case as part of a broader pattern of credential-based cyber frauds, where official IDs are misused to create layers of anonymity for financial transactions.
