In an era where scams and digital fraud are on the rise, a recent incident at Bengaluru airport highlights the dangers of online fraud. A woman has revealed how she lost over Rs 87,000 to a scam after she was asked to download an app for lounge access. This is the first time that such a scam has come to light, raising concerns about airport security and the tactics adopted by fraudsters. Typically, lounge staff do not ask passengers to download the app, making this situation extremely unusual and worrying.

In a viral video, the woman shared her experience of trying to access airport lounges without her physical credit card. Instead, she presented a photo of her card, causing lounge staff to ask her to download an app called “Lounge Pass” and undergo a facial check for security purposes. Trusting the process, she followed the instructions but soon realized something was wrong.

Even after downloading the app, the woman never used the lounge and went to a nearby Starbucks for coffee before boarding her flight. A few days into her trip, she began noticing strange behavior on her phone – people were unable to reach her, and someone else, reportedly a man, was answering her calls. Initially, she blamed it on poor network coverage, as she had been facing connectivity issues with Airtel for months.

The real shock came when he received his credit card statement, which revealed unauthorized transactions totaling over Rs 87,000, all of which were transferred to the PhonePe account. She now believes the app she downloaded allowed fraudsters to access her phone, enabling call forwarding and possibly intercepting one-time passwords (OTPs) to complete fraudulent transactions. could.

“This lounge pass app that they asked me to download… they went into my phone, went into my settings and did call forwarding, so I don’t get any calls. I don’t know how many of my OTPs they have access to ,” the woman explained.

The incident has raised alarm about the increasing complexity of scams, especially in places like airports where people often feel safe. The woman then lodged a complaint with the cyber crime department, blocked her HDFC credit card and informed her bank. This story serves as a warning to travelers to be cautious and avoid downloading apps or providing personal information without verifying their validity.