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KYC scams that trick you: fake KYC updates, screen-sharing apps, SIM swaps and digital arrest

TheRollNumber team · 28 October 2026 · 4 min read

Some KYC scams don't need a fake identity. They trick you into handing over your own: your login, your OTP, your phone. This is part 1 of our guide to KYC scams in India, on the four that work on the person.

  • 1,06,483"KYC and payment" scam reports on Chakshu in 2025, five times 2024
  • 3,718fraudulent apps blocked by June 2026
  • 15.75 lakhSIM cards used in cybercrime blocked by June 2026
  • Rs 9.88 croretaken in one e-SIM swap in Nagpur

1. Fake "KYC update" messages

A text, WhatsApp message or call says your bank, SIM or electricity KYC has expired and your account will be blocked. A link or a "helper" then takes your login, card details or OTP. The RBI has warned about this since 2021.

1 in 5About one in five scam messages Indians reported on Chakshu in 2025 were fake KYC or payment alerts, up from 21,281 reports in 2024 to 1,06,483.

KYC and paymentAll other scam reports

Source: Department of Telecommunications, Rajya Sabha reply, February 2026: 1,06,483 of 5,19,662 reports in 2025

Fake KYC alerts were the most reported scam on Chakshu in 2025
  1. KYC and payment alerts1,06,483
  2. Fake customer care numbers60,985
  3. Job, lottery and loan offers58,560
  4. Posing as police, CBI or RBI54,639
  5. Investment and trading29,140

Source: Department of Telecommunications, Rajya Sabha reply, February 2026 (Chakshu reports, selected categories)

Udupi, September 2026A WhatsApp "bank representative" asked a man to update his KYC and sent an app. He entered his bank details, and Rs 17.5 lakh left his accounts (Deccan Herald).

2. Screen-sharing and remote-access apps

The fake "KYC agent" sends an app to "complete verification". It hands over your phone. Fraudsters buy these apps ready-made, and the government had blocked 3,718 fraudulent apps, including loan apps, by June 2026.

What the victim sees, screen by screen
  1. KYC Support
    Your electricity KYC is pending. Install this app to complete it.
    APKCustomerSupport.apk · 8.4 MB

    The app arrives on WhatsApp, from a fake KYC agent.

  2. Settings
    Install unknown apps
    Allow from this source
    Your phone blocks unknown apps until you switch this on.

    The warning is switched off because the caller says so.

  3. Start sharing your screen?Customer Support will see everything on your screen, including passwords and messages.
    CancelStart now

    One tap and the caller sees your screen.

  4. Messages · now482193 is your OTP for Rs 49,999. Do not share it.
    The caller sees this

    The money moves as he reads your OTPs.

An illustration based on police accounts of cases in Delhi and Udupi. Screens are simplified.

Delhi, December 2025A fake electricity official sent a Delhi resident a "Customer Support" app and took Rs 1.2 lakh. Police arrested the app's maker, who allegedly sold such apps to fraudsters for about Rs 15,000 each (PTI).

ADi WalletVerified records, shared with a yesPeople hold records fetched from the source, approve every request, see who holds what and can revoke access at any time.See ADi Wallet →

3. SIM swap and number takeover

Your OTPs go to your mobile number. In a SIM swap, a scammer gets a duplicate SIM or e-SIM for it, often on fake KYC documents. Your phone loses signal, and the OTPs go to them.

Follow the money: one e-SIM swap in Nagpur
  1. Fake KYCdocuments used to get an e-SIM for the victim's number
  2. Monthsof watching the account before striking
  3. Rs 9.88 croremoved out by RTGS over three days
  4. 1,000+bank accounts used to scatter the money
  5. Rs 4.21 crorefrozen or recovered, and six arrested

Source: Nagpur Rural Police, via The Hitavada, 17 October 2026

The case was reported by The Hitavada. India publishes no count of SIM swaps, but SIMs blocked for cybercrime keep rising:

SIM cards blocked for cybercrime, on police inputs
  1. By July 20259.42 lakh
  2. By December 202512.21 lakh
  3. By June 202615.75 lakh

Source: Ministry of Home Affairs replies to Parliament, via PTI (July 2025), Free Press Journal (February 2026) and India Today NE (August 2026)

The figures come from Lok Sabha replies reported by PTI, the Free Press Journal and India Today NE.

The rules are tightening
  1. August 2023The telecom department announces full KYC for SIM replacement and a 24-hour SMS bar after it.
  2. June 2026The Karnataka High Court makes BSNL compensate a bank after a duplicate SIM let fraudsters take Rs 87.7 lakh.
  3. August 2026Biometric identification becomes mandatory to get or change a SIM.

4. Digital arrest: KYC as a threat

A caller says your Aadhaar was used in a crime, and fake police keep you on a video call until you pay. Complaints fell from 1,23,672 in 2024 to 58,239 in 2025, but people still reported losing Rs 1,211 crore that year (Free Press Journal). Our full guide to digital arrest scams explains how the call works.

Delhi, 2025A retired banker was told his Aadhaar had been used to get a mobile number linked to a terror case. Men posing as Mumbai Police kept him under "digital arrest" for six weeks and took Rs 22.92 crore (ThePrint).

Real or scam?

Real or scam? Tap each line to check

Checked 0 of 6. Every one of these lines is a scam.

Call 1930The national cyber fraud helpline. Call as soon as money moves, or report on cybercrime.gov.in.

What to do

  • Report scam calls and messages on Chakshu, on the telecom department's Sanchar Saathi portal.
  • If money has gone, call 1930 or report on cybercrime.gov.in, then call your bank on the number from its official website.
  • If your phone suddenly loses signal, call your operator and your bank at once.

These four scams trick the person, so no document check stops them; habits do. Part 2 covers the scams where checking a record at its source does help, the approach behind ADi Wallet and Checkkbox. To see how it fits your onboarding or hiring, book a demo.

Sources

  1. Reserve Bank of India, "RBI cautions against frauds in the name of KYC updation", February 2024
  2. Press Information Bureau (Ministry of Communications), "Chakshu facility of Sanchar Saathi enables citizens to report suspected fraud communications under various categories", February 2026
  3. Deccan Herald, "Bank 'KYC update' on WhatsApp costs Udupi man Rs 17.5 lakh", September 2026
  4. India Today NE, "Centre blocks 3,718 mobile apps, saves over Rs 11,158 crore from cyber fraud", August 2026
  5. The Tribune (PTI), "Delhi Police nabs man from Jamtara for supplying remote-access app used in online frauds", December 2025
  6. The Hitavada, "e-SIM swap, 1,000 bank accounts: How 6 conmen stole Rs 9.88 cr", October 2026
  7. Outlook Money (PTI), "Cyber Fraud Cases Surge in 2024; Citizens Lost Rs 22,845 Crore, Says Govt", July 2025
  8. Free Press Journal, "Over 24 Lakh Cyber Complaints, ₹22,495 Crore Fraud Reported In 2025", February 2026
  9. Press Information Bureau (Ministry of Communications), "Two reforms introduced for Mobile User Protection to promote a cleaner and safer digital ecosystem", August 2023
  10. Business Today, "A duplicate SIM, stolen OTPs and ₹87 lakh gone: Know why BSNL is now paying ₹55 lakh", June 2026
  11. MediaNama, "DoT Makes Biometric Identification Mandatory for Mobile SIMs", August 2026
  12. Free Press Journal, "Digital Arrest Fraud: Over 21,900 Complaints Involving ₹647 Crore Registered In 2026, Centre Tells Supreme Court", October 2026
  13. ThePrint, "Retd Delhi banker duped of Rs 23 cr: CBI charges Siliguri trust in one of the biggest digital arrest cases", April 2026
  14. Department of Telecommunications, "Sanchar Saathi", accessed October 2026
  15. National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, accessed October 2026
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