A new investment scam is spreading across the country, in which people are being lured by promising high returns by investing in stocks. However, instead of real investments, the scammers make people invest on fake websites and later steal all their invested money. The latest victim of this scam is Manish Mishra, a 41-year-old businessman from Nagpur, who lost Rs 87 lakh within ten days.

The trouble started when Mishra received a friend request from Jesleen Prasad on Facebook. Shortly after accepting the request, Prasad made Mishra a lucrative offer, suggesting that he could trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) through a portal called newyorkstockexchangev.top. To convince him further, Prasad shared screenshots of successful trades of other investors on Facebook, which allegedly showed significant profits, reports Times of India.

Impressed by these testimonials, Mishra trusted the scammer and agreed to start with a small investment of Rs 10,000. After sharing his bank details, he received a login ID for the trading platform. To his surprise, the initial investment of Rs 50,000 grew to Rs 1.42 lakh within just ten minutes and the amount was instantly credited to his bank account. This initial success further strengthened Mishra’s faith in the platform.

Within a week, Prasad made the victim another lucrative offer: invest Rs 30 lakh with the promise of tenfold profits. Additionally, Mishra was told that he would have to share 10 per cent of the profits with the operators. Trusting the platform, Mishra continued to invest and followed the trading instructions given. However, instead of gaining profits, Mishra saw his entire investment drained within ten minutes.

When Mishra contacted Prasad in a panic, he was told that he had suffered losses because he had not followed the instructions properly. Prasad then offered another chance to invest Rs 57 lakh and promised ten times returns. Desperate to recoup his losses, Mishra agreed and invested the money. This time, the trading screen showed a profit of Rs 8 crore in his name.

However, when Mishra requested payment to his bank account, he was told that a security code was needed to process the transaction. To generate this code, Mishra was told that he would have to pay an additional Rs 82 lakh. Mishra realised that he had been cheated, so he decided not to make the payment and instead approached the police and lodged a complaint.

How to stay safe from such scams?

• Before investing, always verify the authenticity of the trading platform. Check reviews, regulatory approvals, and warnings from financial authorities.
• Be wary of investment opportunities that promise unusually high returns with little risk. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
• Never share your bank details or other sensitive information with unverified individuals or platforms.
• Research and verify the credentials of the person or company offering the investment. Look for any red flags or negative reviews online.
• Only use established and well-known trading platforms that have a proven track record of security and reliability.