A dated log of the patterns we are seeing, newest first. Each one says how serious it is and the single most useful thing to do about it.
Last updated 13 September 2026 . We add an entry when we see a pattern ourselves or in what people send us. This is not an automated feed.
I4C has warned about fraudsters impersonating senior officials, including RBI officers and company CEOs, to order urgent transfers by email and WhatsApp. It works on trust and rank, not on technical tricks.
Verify any payment instruction by calling the person on the number you already had, never the one that messaged you.
Source: MHA and I4C advisory, reported by News18 , I4C advisory summary, 22 June 2026
Reporting describes a shift towards many low-value thefts rather than a few large ones, helped by AI. Amounts small enough to be missed on a statement, taken often enough to add up.
Read your statement line by line each month. A debit too small to notice is the point of it.
Source: Economic Times reporting on low-value cybercrime and AI
Fraud detection firm BioCatch reports SMS-based scams in India rising 146% in its Digital Banking Fraud Trends 2026 study, a shift away from technical attacks towards persuading people directly.
Treat every unexpected SMS link as hostile. Open the app or type the address yourself instead.
Source: BioCatch Digital Banking Fraud Trends in India 2026, via Economic Times
Phones receiving hundreds of one-time passwords and calls in minutes. The flood is not the attack. It is noise, hiding a single real transaction alert somewhere in the pile.
Do not silence the phone. Open your bank app, UPI app and email first, in that order.
Messages claiming your PAN must be re-issued or re-verified under PAN 2.0, with a link to a lookalike portal. PAN 2.0 does not require you to re-enter anything by SMS.
Type incometax.gov.in yourself in a fresh tab. Never use the link you were sent.
Money leaving accounts through Aadhaar-enabled payments with no OTP and no card, using biometrics lifted from public records. Victims often notice only from the bank SMS.
Lock your Aadhaar biometrics on mAadhaar or uidai.gov.in. Do it before anything happens.
Callers claiming your voter registration needs verification, an OTP, a fee or an app install, timed to the electoral roll revision. Real verification happens with your BLO at your door.
Share no OTP. Verify on 1950 or voters.eci.gov.in, never through a number that called you.
Fake refund approvals and income tax officer calls cluster around filing and assessment deadlines, when a message about a refund is least surprising.
Check refund status only by logging in at incometax.gov.in yourself.
Seen something not listed here? Tell us, or send it on WhatsApp. Patterns arriving from several people in a week are usually the next guide.