“Festive Season ka Sabse Meetha… Aur Sabse Dangerous Trap”
“When emotions rise, scams get easier.”
🖊️ SHUBHRA • 10th December, 2025 • Cybercrime Awareness & Digital Shopping
🧵 “Aapka Gift Hamper Ready Hai!”
Diwali bas ek hafte door thi.
Komal ko WhatsApp par ek message aaya —
“Congratulations! You’ve won a Festive Gift Hamper from MithaasDelights. Claim within 2 hours!”
Message ke saath ek stylish banner tha — floral borders, festive lights aur ek branded-looking logo.
Komal ko yaad aaya ki usne kuch dino pehle Instagram par ek sweet giveaway dekha tha. “Shayad wahi hoga,” soch kar usne link par click kar diya.
Link ek perfectly branded page par le gaya — same logo, same colours, same fonts.
“Lucky Winner Verification” likha tha.
She entered her name.
Her phone lagged for a second.
Within minutes:
Her UPI app auto-exited.
A new SMS popped up — “Rs. 9,999 debited.”
Festive happiness turned into panic.
But scammer ka festival abhi shuru hua tha.
🕵️ How It Was Pulled Off
Scammers ne popular sweet, dry fruit, mehndi, gifting aur hamper brands ke naam par fake pages banaye.
WhatsApp groups, Telegram, Instagram reels par mass blast messages bheje gaye.
Banner aur colour scheme exact original jaisi rakhkar trust build kiya.
Users ko “Winner Verification” ke naam par
Name
Number
UPI ID
OTP
collect kiya gaya.
Backend par ek UPI Collect Request set hota tha.
User, excited & distracted, Approve dabata aur paisa seedha scammer ke account me.
🎭 What This Scam Actually Is
This is a Brand Impersonation + Giveaway Trap, where scammers:
Known festival-season brands (sweet shops, gift stores, hamper companies, Amazon/Flipkart-like sellers) ka naam chura kar fake offer chalate hain.
Ek limited-time excitement create karte hain:
“Claim in 2 hours”,
“Last 50 Winners”,
“₹0 shipping”
Link par click karte hi user ek phishing page par pahunchta hai.
Scam ka final goal:
✔️ UPI Auto Debit
✔️ Card info theft
✔️ Personal data harvesting
🔍 How To Recognize This Scam
“Congratulations! You’ve won a hamper” type messages bina kisi contest ke.
Brand ka name correct, but URL hamesha weird.
Claim karne ka 2-hour fake countdown.
Page par spelling mistakes — ‘verifcation’, ‘conguratulations’.
UPI ID verification ya ₹5 ka token fee.
Same message 20 different groups me forward hota hua.
Rule:
👉 If you didn’t participate, you didn’t win.
👉 If it feels urgent, it’s engineered.
🛡️ How To Stay Safe
Never click festival-freebie links from WhatsApp.
Brand ki official website par jaakar check karo — offers hamesha waha listed hote hain.
UPI Collect Requests blindly approve mat karo.
Giveaway ya hamper message group me forward mat karo— someone else may fall for it.
Always check:
✔️ URL
✔️ Spelling
✔️ Brand’s verified handles
Phone me anti-phishing warning enable rakho.
Agar scam ho jaye:
1930 par call karo
cybercrime.gov.in par report karo
Bank ko immediate block request bhejo
✍️ Author’s Note — A Small Message From Me
Festivals humare gharon me khushiyaan laate hain.
Scammers unhi khushiyon ka fayda uthate hain.
A single careless click can turn celebrations into chaos.
Iss blog ko aage share karo — shayad kisi ka festival secure ho jaye.
📣 CTA — Stay Aware, Stay Celebratory!
If you found this helpful, share this blog with friends & family.
Let’s make this festive season joyful — not fraudulent.
➡️ Share. Safe Raho. Scam Free Festivals Banao.
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