Investment fraud is one of the most deceptive forms of financial crime, often fueled by social engineering tactics that manipulate the human mind. Fraudsters build trust by impersonating financial experts, fabricating endorsements from reputable organisations or at times using fake videos of social media influencers. They promise extraordinary returns, exclusive investment opportunities, or limited-time deals, pushing individuals to invest without due diligence. Once the individual invests, the fraudsters disappear abruptly or continue extracting funds till the individual realises that he is getting conned. As scams evolve with technology, awareness remains the best defense against these psychological manipulations.
Types of investment frauds
Fake Trading Platforms and Apps: Scammers create bogus investment apps or websites that resemble legitimate brokers, fund houses or exchanges. Users are initially enticed to deposit money by showing virtual profits on fake screens. Once they invest substantial amounts, they are prevented from withdrawing funds.
Stock at discounted prices: Fraudsters promote lesser known, low volume stocks and assure early access at heavily discounted prices only for select clients. They ask investors to transfer funds to personal accounts instead of the exchange or broking houses, indicating fraudulent intention. In this scam, they usually mop-up huge value of funds which is normally in lakhs, under the guise of creating riches through share trading.
Fake Job scams: Scammers, under the guise of offering employment, persuade victims to provide write-up’s and share documents. They ask for a nominal fee to establish legitimacy of the transaction. Subsequently, the victim is deceived into making further commission payments which typically goes up over multiple interactions, until they eventually recognize the fraudulent nature of the schemes.
Ponzi and Pyramid Schemes: These scams promise high returns to investors but pay early investors with funds from newer ones, not actual profits. They collapse when new money dries up.
- Verify Before Investing: Always check SEBI, RBI, or official regulatory websites for registered firms
- Be Skeptical of High Returns: If an investment sounds too good to be true, it is likely a scam
- Avoid Pressure Tactics: Legitimate investments don’t require urgent decisions
- Check Website & Email Authenticity: Look for HTTPS, official domain names, and avoid clicking on unsolicited links
- Never Share Personal or Banking Details: Fraudsters use these to manipulate and steal funds
Being cautious and well-informed is the best defense against investment scams. Always research before investing and never trust unsolicited investment offers. Report suspicious number to the national cybercrime helpline by dialing 1930 or the Department of Telecommunication (https://sancharsaathi.gov.in/sfc/). Save messages, take screenshots and document interactions.
About NPCI:
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is the central body responsible for overseeing retail payments and settlement systems in India. It is established by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA). The Company is focused on bringing innovations in the retail payment systems by using technology for achieving greater efficiency in operations and widening the reach of payment systems. NPCI is committed to harnessing the transformative potential of deep tech, creating an ecosystem that fosters collaboration to work on breakthrough technologies. Underlining its commitment to service, NPCI has been incorporated as a “Not for Profit” Company to provide infrastructure to the entire Banking system in India for physical as well as electronic payment and settlement systems.
NPCI has made a profound impact on India’s retail payment landscape, focusing on creating robust, efficient, and inclusive payment and settlement solutions. NPCI has been instrumental in introducing a range of products that have revolutionised retail payment systems. These include Unified Payments Interface (UPI), RuPay, National Automated Clearing House (NACH), Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC), Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS), e-RUPI and more. Each of these products has contributed significantly to enhance the efficiency and accessibility of payment systems in India, ultimately propelling financial inclusion.
NPCI has played a fundamental role in establishing the foundation for India’s rapidly growing digital payments ecosystem, projecting the country onto the global stage.
NPCI has three wholly owned subsidiaries – NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) and NPCI Bharat BillPay Limited (NBBL) and NPCI BHIM Services Limited (NBSL), established in pursuance of NPCI Board & RBI approval.
For more information visit: https://www.npci.org.in/
