Hyderabad police case over fake "SBI-INT" trading app pushed via WhatsApp group posing as SBI Securities
Hyderabad Mail reported on 2 November 2026 that police registered a case after a man allegedly lost about Rs 72.57 lakh to a WhatsApp group posing as SBI Securities that pushed a fake trading app, “SBI-INT”. These are allegations.
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Source: hyderabadmail.com · published
What happened
Hyderabad Mail reported on 2 November 2026 that the Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police registered a case after a man allegedly lost about Rs 72.57 lakh in a WhatsApp investment scam impersonating SBI Securities. According to the report, the complainant said that on 25 July 2024, after seeing an advertisement on Google, he joined a WhatsApp group named “SBI Securities” that claimed to give investment advice on upcoming IPOs and stock picks. These are allegations from the complaint, and the report does not say that anyone has been arrested.
How the scam works
The report says the group was run by a person presenting as an expert, and that other participants joined in, including someone who claimed to represent SBI Customer Care. The complainant was told he needed an “SBI Securities International” trading account and was asked to download a trading app called “SBI-INT”, with help to set up an account. He was then told to add money to start trading. After a first small deposit, he was shown how to trade and managed to withdraw a small amount. The group showed many transactions and profits, and he kept adding money on different days, believing it was safe. All payments went from his bank account to the app's trading wallet.
The trouble began when he tried to withdraw larger sums. According to the report, he had been told to apply for several IPOs and was shown fake share allocations. His withdrawal requests were then blocked, and the group's leaders said the money was locked for IPOs and demanded extra payments to release it, described as taxes or special withdrawal fees. The group displayed fabricated profit statements and kept demanding payments before any withdrawal. When he realised it was a scam, he filed a complaint naming the fraudulent website, the WhatsApp users and the holders of the bank accounts as suspects.
The police registered a case under relevant sections of law and began an investigation. The pattern is a familiar one: an ad leads to a group with a fake expert, an app that shows invented profits, small early withdrawals that build trust and then demands for fees to release money.
Source
Hyderabad Mail, “Hyderabad man loses Rs 72 lakh in fake SBI Securities whatsapp investment scam”, 2 November 2026. These are allegations from a complaint; no arrests were reported.
Red flags
- An advertisement on Google that leads to a WhatsApp group posing as SBI Securities.
- A group offering IPO and stock tips, with members claiming to be experts or customer care.
- A trading app, “SBI-INT”, that has to be downloaded and funded through bank transfers.
- Small early withdrawals and fabricated profit statements that build trust.
- Withdrawals blocked, with fresh payments demanded for “tax” or special withdrawal fees.
If you were targeted
- 1Do not join investment groups found through ads, and do not install trading apps sent by group members.
- 2Invest only through brokers and apps registered with SEBI, and check the broker's name on SEBI's website.
- 3Never pay taxes or fees to release money that an app says is yours.
- 4If you lost money, report it on 1930 or at cybercrime.gov.in and tell your bank immediately.
- 5Keep chats, screenshots, app details and bank records for the police.