Wealth management platform Upstox’s cybersecurity team has identified patterns across instances of individuals trying to impersonate brands and scam people by using artificial intelligence (AI). These include offers of educational courses, stock tips, and promising guaranteed returns by creating fake social media accounts, apps, WhatsApp groups, and websites pretending to be Upstox.
‘Upstox Facilities Group’ and ‘Upstox Investment Academy’ are the most seen imposters that use Upstox’s name to scam people into fraudulent educational courses and sessions on the stock market.
Upstox Co-founder and CEO, Ravi Kumar said that these impersonating platforms target customers from Tier 2 and Tier 3 who are more prone to scams as they lack awareness and information. He requested the investors to use Upstox’s official channels for transactions, adding that the safety and security of investors are crucial to the platform.
Taking cognizance of the issue, the platform has developed an awareness campaign across multiple communication channels to educate and protect investors. The initiative features different campaigns for different users, email campaigns to alert new, active, and dormant users, in-app product banners to alert logged-in users, frequent push notifications, and social media campaigns.
These measures can be taken to beware of such frauds:
Verify Communication Channels & Broker Legitimacy
Look for SEBI registration and Stock Exchange membership to verify the credibility, authority, and legitimacy of the communication platform and the broker and its offers. In case of scams, there might be unexpected calls, emails, or messages claiming quick profits. In such case, you ought to block and report the imposter here:
Protect Personal Information
Make note that Upstox or its employees never ask for personal details without proper verification. Additionally, it is your responsibility to keep your sensitive information private from unknown individuals in all cases.
Caution to Investors
Further, Upstox emphasized that its employees neither use unofficial platforms to ask for personal or financial information, nor share stock tips offering guaranteed returns. Kumar stated that Upstox advises its Investors to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity immediately, adding that the platform shall not be held accountable in case of improper transactions resulting from fraudulent activities.
