A medical equipment supplier from Chandigarh has become the latest victim of a sophisticated online fraud, losing a substantial sum of money to cybercriminals who impersonated a business partner via email. The incident has prompted the UT cyber crime cell to launch a detailed investigation.
The Elaborate Email Deception
The complainant, identified as Sanjiv Sabharwal, a resident of Sector 38 in Chandigarh, runs a medical firm. According to his police complaint, he had a pending payment of Rs 15.38 lakh with a company based in Chennai. The fraud unfolded when, on October 6, 2025, Sabharwal's firm received an email that appeared to be from the Chennai-based company.
The email cleverly informed Sabharwal that the Chennai firm had changed its bank account. It provided new banking details for a Canara Bank account, instructing him to transfer the pending funds there. Believing the communication to be genuine, Sabharwal's accounts staff sought his approval and proceeded to make the transaction.
The Costly Transaction and Discovery
Acting on the instructions from the fake email, the staff transferred the entire amount of Rs 15.38 lakh to the provided account on October 17, 2025. The deception was only uncovered nearly a week later. On October 23, the genuine Chennai firm contacted Sabharwal to follow up on the outstanding payment, revealing that they had never received the funds and had not sent any email about changing their bank account.
It was then that Sabharwal realized the email he received was sent from a fraudulent Gmail account created by scammers to mimic his business associate. The cybercriminals had intercepted the business communication and executed a well-timed fraud.
Police Action and Ongoing Probe
Following the discovery, Sanjiv Sabharwal immediately approached the authorities and filed a formal complaint. On the basis of his complaint, the UT cyber crime cell has registered a case against unidentified persons. The case falls under relevant sections of the Information Technology Act and the Indian Penal Code pertaining to cheating and impersonation.
Investigators have confirmed that a probe is underway to trace the individuals behind the fake email account and the bank account that received the illicit funds. No arrests have been made so far. The police are analyzing digital footprints and bank transaction details to identify the culprits.
This incident serves as a stark reminder for businesses, especially small and medium enterprises, to rigorously verify any communication requesting changes to financial details. Experts recommend always using a secondary, pre-verified channel of communication like a phone call to confirm such requests before initiating large transactions.
