The victim, Kripesh Palrecha, said he received a call from an unknown person claiming to be an executive from Facebook headquarters
A Mumbai-based imitation jewellery businessman was shocked when his business page on Instagram was hacked. The hacker deleted the account, and then called the victim demanding Rs 6,000 in return for restoring the account. The victim, who runs his business online, has approached Byculla police station to register a complaint.
The victim, Kripesh Palrecha, said he received a call from an unknown person claiming to be an executive from Facebook headquarters. Instagram, in 2012, had been acquired by Facebook. In fluent English, the hacker told Palrecha that a 1,000 people had complained about his business page and Facebook would have to deactivate his account or delete the page if any irregularities were found. To continue using the account, he would have to verify account details, the hacker had said, who then asked for business details and OTP (one-time password). "He demanded I share the OTP number with him, which would be generated for verification a few minutes after the call. I had no choice and had no time to analyse the situation. The moment I shared the OTP, my account was hacked and a ransom amount was demanded in order for it to be freed," Palrecha told DNA
"When I called back on the hacker's number and asked why I wasn't able to use my account, I was told me to pay Rs 6,000 as ransom for account retrieval. I typed his number out on Facebook in a keyword search and discovered that the hacker had duped many people in past," he added.
"The victim has approached us, we are verifying his claims, and have asked him to provide us with all the details," said an officer from Byculla police station.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Hacker")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}