For online fraud, UPI scam, phishing, or internet banking fraud — demanding reversal and compensation.
Cyber Crime Cell of Police or IT Adjudicating Authority.
File police complaint immediately. Civil suit within 3 years.
This coverage is provided by a practicing advocate. Specific sections cited depend on the facts you provide during drafting.
A cyber fraud recovery notice is sent to a fraudster (or, more practically, to the bank or payment platform through which the fraud was executed) demanding reversal of an unauthorised transaction, freezing of the fraudster's account, or recovery of funds lost to online fraud — including UPI fraud, phishing, OTP fraud, fake investment scams, SIM-swap fraud, and online shopping fraud.
Send this notice immediately after discovering you have been defrauded online. The sooner you act, the higher the chance of fund recovery — RBI guidelines require banks to freeze suspicious accounts within 24–48 hours when alerted. Also report on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (cybercrime.gov.in) simultaneously. A legal notice creates an official paper trail and puts the bank on constructive notice of the fraud.
Key laws: Section 66C IT Act, 2000 (identity theft — imprisonment up to 3 years); Section 66D IT Act (cheating by personation — imprisonment up to 3 years); Sections 419/420 IPC (cheating and impersonation); Section 406 IPC (criminal breach of trust). RBI's Master Direction on Cyber Security (2016) and the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 impose obligations on banks to have fraud detection mechanisms. RBI circular on limiting customer liability in unauthorised electronic transactions (July 2017) entitles victims to zero liability if reported within 3 days.
File a complaint on cybercrime.gov.in immediately (within the first hour if possible). The Cyber Crime Police can issue a Legal Hold Notice to the bank to freeze the fraudster's account. If the bank fails to act on your legal notice, file a complaint with the Banking Ombudsman or Consumer Commission for deficiency in service. Amounts frozen within 24–48 hours are frequently reversed.
Call your bank immediately to block your account/card, file a complaint on cybercrime.gov.in (or call helpline 1930), save all screenshots and transaction records, and send a legal notice to the bank demanding account freeze. Speed is critical — funds moved to other accounts become harder to recover.
Possibly, if reported immediately. The RBI's zero-liability circular allows full recovery if reported within 3 working days of the transaction (for negligence attributable to the bank). For customer-negligence cases (sharing OTP), partial recovery may be possible if reported within 7 days.
Under RBI's July 2017 circular, if the fraud is entirely due to the bank's negligence (system breach, not your fault), you have zero liability. If you shared OTP or credentials under phishing, liability is shared. Reporting speed determines the outcome.
Yes. File an FIR at your nearest police station under Sections 419/420 IPC and 66C/66D IT Act. You can also file online at cybercrime.gov.in. The Cyber Crime Police have tools to trace accounts and freeze funds faster than civil courts.
Cyber Crime Police have pan-India jurisdiction for online offences under the IT Act. For international fraudsters, Interpol coordination through Indian authorities is possible. Focus first on the Indian bank or payment platform through which the money was routed.
Yes. If the bank failed to implement adequate security controls or ignored early fraud signals, it can be held liable for deficiency in service under the Consumer Protection Act and for breach of the RBI's Master Directions on Cyber Security.
SIM-swap fraud involves fraudsters convincing your telecom operator to issue a new SIM, gaining access to your OTPs. The telecom operator and bank can both be held liable. File complaints with both, approach the telecom regulator TRAI, and report to cyber crime police.
Police complaints have no strict limitation period, but immediate action dramatically improves recovery chances. The RBI's zero/limited liability circular requires reporting within 3–7 working days of the transaction for full benefit. Consumer complaints must be filed within 2 years.
Please confirm all of the following before proceeding with your Cyber Fraud Notice notice:
Please confirm all eligibility conditions above to proceed. If you are unsure about any point, you may not be eligible for this type of notice.