Stay Alert: Fake Flipkart Ads on Facebook Are Tricking Shoppers
Scammers try everything, or rather something new each time, to dupe people. From fraud X users pretending to be Flipkart support to fake websites posing as Flipkart, they always come up with new tricks. And now, one of our subscribers’ mothers has unfortunately fallen prey to such a scam.
Here is what happened
According to him, his mother was on her Facebook feed when an ad suddenly popped up claiming to be from Flipkart. When she clicked on it, a Flipkart-like mobile landing page opened, making her believe she was on the official Flipkart site.
She then came across an unbelievable deal where Saffola oil, which normally sells for around ₹800, was listed as the “deal of the day” for just ₹219. Excited to save money, she went ahead and made the payment via UPI. But on checking further, the website posing as Flipkart was revealed to have a URL of https://rakhispecialviral-offer-sound.shop, and this URL was revealed via the Facebook in-app browser. The sad part is that the site is still live and displays a homepage designed to mimic Flipkart.
The website only shows four or five products, each with a “Buy Now” button. Once clicked, it redirects to a payment gateway page powered by Cashfree Payments, a payment aggregator. The question that arises is how a fraudulent domain, which does not even contain Flipkart in its name but shows a Flipkart landing page, was allowed to accept payments through Cashfree’s payment gateway. This is deeply concerning.
We have also checked this fake website, and yes, it is still working and accepting payments, effectively fooling customers. A recording of the complete checkout process has been attached, and we hope Cashfree shuts down this merchant and ensures refunds for affected customers.
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It would be wise for everyone to stay vigilant, especially with elderly family members. As technology advances, cybercrime will also continue to evolve. We also tried to contact Cashfree regarding this matter, but have not received a reply yet. If there is any update, we will share it with our readers.
