DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran says Rs 99,999 stolen from his bank account

CHENNAI: DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran on Tuesday took to social media stating that Rs 99,999 was stolen from his Axis bank account through a net banking transfer bypassing all .

"An OTP, the standard protocol for such transactions, was neither generated nor received by my linked mobile number. Instead, a call was made to the account's joint holder - my wife's number and the fraudsters had the gall to ask if the transaction had taken place," Dayanidhi Maran posted on the social media site X (formerly Twitter).

Suspicious of their activity, the MP had blocked all activities in his account. He wondered how the scamsters accessed personal information and breached security protocols with such ease.

"This wasn't a phishing attack nor were any sensitive details divulged. Axis Bank was clueless as to how the attack had happened nor could they give any solid explanation for why the OTP was not required from my number for the transaction to take place," he stated.

If this can happen to someone who is aware of tech and cautious with private data, he wondered about the safety of data for first-time digital users and senior citizens.

Recalling his communications to Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman seeking help for cybercrime victims in his capacity as a Member of Parliament, the Tamil Nadu politician said, "Today, as a victim, I demand accountability & justice,".

He referred to reports about Financial fraud accounting for 75% of cybercrimes in India from Jan 2020 to June 2023 and reports about sensitive Aadhaar data being sold emerged as early as 2018.

"Banks' data breaches & ransomware attacks have become regular news. For India to excel in the digital world or to emerge as a FinTech hub, we need robust security and government action. What action is the government taking to protect our private data?

Will Finance Minister release a white paper on this? We need answers and we need them now," Dayanidhi Maran stated.