Udaan Hit By SMS Spoofing Fraud: How To Protect Yourself

E-commerce platform Udaan is grappling with a disruptive SMS spoofing fraud where fake messages promising cash rewards led to operational breakdowns and a police investigation.

Key Points

Udaan, an e-commerce platform, has been targeted by a large-scale SMS spoofing fraud.
Fraudulent SMS messages, appearing to originate from Udaan, promised cash rewards and contained links to an online betting website.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) blacklisted Udaan's SMS templates and sender ID due to the fraudulent messages.
Udaan's messaging operations were severely affected, leading to a breakdown of SMS-based services and financial losses.
Police have registered an FIR and initiated an investigation into the SMS spoofing fraud targeting Udaan.

An FIR has been registered against unknown people for allegedly sending fraudulent messages in the name of an e-commerce platform with promises of cash rewards, further disrupting its operations, police said on Wednesday.

The offence is said to have taken place between April 23 and April 27, they said.

Udaan Files Complaint Over SMS Fraud

A representative of city-based technology company Hiveloop Technology Pvt Ltd (HTPL), part of the Udaan group (eB2B platform), has lodged a complaint alleging a large-scale SMS spoofing fraud following which a detailed investigation has been initiated into the matter, a senior police officer said.

According to the FIR, HTPL is a registered entity on the TRAI-mandated DLT platform, which permits only pre-approved SMS templates and whitelisted URLs to be sent through authorised sender IDs.

How The SMS Spoofing Unfolded

The issue came to light on April 23, when HTPL received alerts from buyers about fraudulent SMS messages appearing to originate from the company's sender ID "UDAANN". The messages reportedly contained Bitly links and falsely claimed a credit of Rs 10,001, urging recipients to withdraw money, it said.

On April 27, at around 12:49 pm, the DLT platform blacklisted HTPL's SMS templates, citing their alleged use in sending fraudulent messages. Within minutes, the company's sender ID was also blacklisted. Airtel's DLT system subsequently confirmed the action and shared details of the fraudulent messages that were circulated in HTPL's name without its knowledge or consent, the FIR stated.

Impact On Udaan's Operations

Following this, the company's messaging operations were affected, and even legitimate communications such as one-time passwords to buyers began failing. Later, the DLT operator suspended HTPL's entire account following complaints raised on TRAI's Chakshu platform, bringing all SMS services of the company to a halt, it further stated.

HTPL has stated that neither it nor its authorised vendors sent the fraudulent messages. The links embedded in the messages reportedly redirected users to an online betting website, the FIR stated.

The company has claimed that the incident has resulted in a complete breakdown of SMS-based services, including buyer authentication, order updates and promotional communication, leading to significant financial losses.

At least 13 victims have been identified so far, with the possibility of more affected users. Victims were allegedly directed to an online betting platform, raising concerns of potential financial fraud, the FIR added.

Disclaimer: News content is sourced from the stated source. Headlines, summaries, section headers, and images are automatically generated or selected using AI/algorithms and may not always be fully accurate. Readers are advised to refer to the full article for complete context.