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According to the police complaint filed on 5 November by Group Pharmaceuticals Ltd., a Bengaluru-based company that supplies goods to Dr Reddy’s, the payment was due as part of a regular business transaction.
Investigators said hackers gained access to email exchanges between the two companies and sent a fake message to Dr Reddy’s finance department on 3 November. The email, which closely resembled the address of a senior executive at Group Pharmaceuticals, instructed Dr Reddy’s to transfer the payment to a new Bank of Baroda account.
Believing the email to be genuine, the company transferred ₹2.16 crore on 4 November. Group Pharmaceuticals later informed the police that it had not sent any such instructions.
The fraudulent bank account was reportedly registered in Vadodara, Gujarat. Police have asked the bank to freeze the account and recover the money before it is withdrawn.
The Bengaluru City Cyber Crime Police Station has registered the case under sections of the Information Technology Act, including 66(C) for identity theft and 66(D) for cheating by impersonation, as well as relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
A police official said the case appears to be a “sophisticated email infiltration” where cybercriminals monitored communication between the companies before sending fake payment details at the right moment.
Business email compromise scams have become increasingly common in India, especially in industries involving large financial transactions such as pharmaceuticals, manufacturing and trade.
Both Dr Reddy’s Laboratories and Group Pharmaceuticals have not yet issued public statements. Police are working to trace the source of the attack and identify the culprits behind the cyber fraud.
Tags:
Cybercrime
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