Hyderabad: A 64-year-old freelancer in the city lost Rs 86,65,563 to a cyber trading scam involving a fake app called SMC Ace.
The trouble began in April 2025 when the victim received WhatsApp messages that promised high daily returns on investments. These messages claimed that one could earn between 2% and 20% on institutional stocks and between 10% and 80% on OTC trades and IPOs under a special quota. To appear genuine, the scammers displayed fake profits and allowed small withdrawals to gain the victim’s trust.
Hyderabad’s cybercrime team investigated and arrested a 27-year-old man from Punjab. They confiscated his mobile phone and debit card. The victim, believing in the fake returns, continued to invest more money into accounts managed by the scammer. But when he tried to withdraw a large sum, the app malfunctioned, and his access to funds was blocked, exposing the scam.
The scheme used emotional and financial tricks to convince the victim to invest more. The scammer falsely claimed to be an expert in forex trading, showed fake profit reports, and asked for extra payments disguised as taxes or fees. They used social media platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram, X, and Facebook to promote their fraudulent activities.
The police retrieved a mobile phone and debit card from the suspect.
