Hackers hit 7cr jackpot, but cops call their bluff

Ahmedabad: For months, an online fraud ring was secretly siphoning money from e-commerce platforms and online casinos, exploiting security loopholes to turn virtual theft into real-world profits. But their luck ran out when the Ahmedabad crime branch arrested three key members of the cybercrime gang, exposing a Rs 7 crore scam that had merchants and betting platforms reeling.
The accused — Vijay Vaghela, Nitesh Madta and Adil Parmar — used security testing tools and debugging software to hack websites, manipulate payment gateways and buy products at heavily discounted prices. The gang also exploited loopholes in online casino platforms by creating multiple fake client IDs to manipulate betting results, officers said.
Vaghela, a resident of Bapunagar, was the group's tech mastermind, skilled in bug hunting and website hacking. Madta, also from Bapunagar, was responsible for selling fraudulently obtained products, while Parmar, a Rakhial resident, handled online gambling and financial transactions. Police said they had been running the operation for the past six-eight months.
Police investigation revealed that the trio scoured the internet for vulnerabilities in e-commerce and betting websites. They also sourced stolen credit and debit card details online to execute their initial transactions. Using debugging software, they modified payment responses, significantly reducing product prices before placing orders, said an official statement of the city crime branch.
After acquiring these products at negligible prices, they resold them to unsuspecting buyers for quick profits. Their operation extended into the online gambling sphere, where they manipulated casino betting platforms using multiple client accounts to tilt the odds in their favour and launder their gains, said the crime branch officers.
During the raid, the crime branch seized mobile phones and valuables worth Rs 3.31 lakh. The trio has been booked under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Information Technology Act, and Gambling Act for cheating, forgery, and criminal conspiracy.