Dayanidhi Maran, former Union Minister and an MP from the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), has informed of being duped of Rs 99,999. The politician took to microblogging site X to reveal details of the theft.
"On Sunday, Rs 99,999 was stolen from my @AxisBank personal savings account through a net banking transfer via @IDFCFIRSTBank-@BillDesk, bypassing all normal safety protocols," the MP stated.
Maran further said that a One Time Password (OTP), which is a standard protocol to initiate such a transaction, was not generated.
"An OTP, the standard protocol for such transactions, was neither generated nor received by my linked mobile number. Instead, a call was made to the account's joint holder - my wife's number and the fraudsters had the gall to ask if the transaction had taken place. They pretended to be from the bank but had @cbic_india on their display picture," he added.
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Expressing his confusion, the DMK leader stated that he was unable to comprehend the manner in which the fraudsters were able to obtain his personal information and breach the security protocols with such ease. He further added that the attack was not a phishing attempt and no confidential data was disclosed.
Maran further stated that his bank was unbeknownst about how the transaction had taken place, "@AxisBank was clueless as to how the attack had happened nor could they give any solid explanation for why the OTP was not required from my number for the transaction to take place."
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He also raised questions about data privacy and security, "if this can happen to someone who is aware of tech and cautious with private data, what about first-time digital users and senior citizens? Is anyone's data safe?"
The ex-minister also demanded answers from the government on the matter of digital security, "Will @FinMinIndia & FM release a white paper on this? We need answers and we need them now."
Axis Bank has said that the investigation in the case is ongoing.
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