Hyderabad police reveal that more than ₹102 crore has been stolen from senior citizens in recent months, as scammers increasingly use sophisticated digital tricks including fake investment schemes and digital arrest scams, prompting renewed calls for vigilance and rapid reporting.
Hyderabad police say senior citizens have lost more than ₹102 crore to cyber fraud over the past 19 months, underscoring how aggressively scammers are now targeting older people with digital schemes ranging from fake investment tips to so-called digital arrest scams.
Police Commissioner V.C. Sajjanar, speaking at an awareness drive on Sunday, said criminals were exploiting the isolation, trust and limited technical familiarity of elderly victims. He said quicker complaints, public education and intervention by banks had helped bring down the number of such cases in 2026.
Figures released by the Hyderabad cybercrime police station show 403 cases involving people above 60 between January 2025 and July 31, 2026, with losses of ₹102.02 crore. In 113 of those cases, victims lost ₹55.88 crore. Police said the most common traps included trading frauds, OTP scams, investment frauds and digital arrest ruses, in which victims are pressured into handing over money or personal details.
The commissioner said 69 digital arrest cases alone accounted for more than ₹31.93 crore in losses. OTP frauds caused losses of ₹4.94 crore, while investment scams led to losses of ₹2.79 crore in 22 cases. He said the fastest route to recovery was immediate reporting, allowing police to freeze accounts during the crucial first hours after a fraud.
Sajjanar also said alert bankers had helped stop several large frauds by flagging unusual premature closures of fixed deposits and unexpected large RTGS or NEFT transfers to unfamiliar accounts. Investigators, he added, had found that a lack of family oversight often left elderly people exposed, with children sometimes noticing the fraud only after substantial sums had already disappeared.
The latest warning comes against a wider backdrop of mixed crime trends in Hyderabad. According to recent crime data reported by local media, the city recorded an overall fall in crime in 2025, but cybercrime remained a major concern, with losses still running into hundreds of crores. Police have repeatedly urged residents to verify calls, avoid sharing one-time passwords and contact authorities immediately if they suspect fraud.
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