Fake customer care numbers in search results

The most dangerous phone number is the one you found by searching in a hurry.

How it works

Your payment failed, a refund is late or a delivery is missing. You search for "*company* customer care number" and call the first number you see. It was planted by a fraudster: in an advertisement above the real results, in an edited map listing, in a comment under the company's social media post, or on a look-alike website.

The "executive" is patient and sympathetic. To "process your refund" he asks you to:

read out the OTP you just received,
open your UPI app and approve a request or enter your PIN,
fill a form with your card details, or
install an app such as a remote-support or screen-sharing tool so that he can "see the problem".

Each of these hands him your money.

The signs

The number is a ten-digit mobile number or was found in an advertisement, a map edit, a comment or a forum, not on the company's own site or app.
He asks for OTP, PIN, CVV, full card number or a screen-share. A real agent already has your account in front of him and needs none of these.
A refund needs a payment: "send Re 1 to verify" or "approve this request to receive the refund".
He keeps you on the line and guides every tap.

Where to find a real number

Inside the official app, under Help or Support. This is the safest route, because the company knows it is you.
On the back of your card, in your passbook or on a statement, for banks.
On the bill, ticket or invoice the company sent you.
On the company's website, typed by hand into the address bar, not reached through a search advertisement.
Trusted Contact Details on the government's Sanchar Saathi portal, which lets you verify customer care numbers, toll-free numbers, email IDs and website links of banks and financial institutions. See Sanchar Saathi.

Save your bank's and wallet's real helpline numbers in your contacts today, so that you never need to search when something goes wrong.

Good habits on any support call

You call them; do not act on a "support" call that arrives by itself just after you complained in public.
Never install an app because a caller asked you to. See remote access scams.
Refunds come back the way the money went. Nothing needs to be approved, scanned or paid.
If in doubt, hang up and call again on a number from the list above.

Someone called me after I posted a complaint on social media. Is that the company?

Be careful. Fraudsters watch company pages and call complainers within minutes. Reply only through the company's verified account or its app.

Are toll-free numbers starting with 1800 always safe?

No. A fake number can be toll-free too. What matters is where you found it.

If money has already gone

Dial 1930 at once. It is the national helpline for victims of financial cyber fraud. Give the transaction details; the earlier the report, the better the chance that the money can be held before it is moved on.
Call your bank or card company on its official number and block the card, UPI or account. Report the transaction as unauthorised and note the complaint number.
File the complaint on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, cybercrime.gov.in, and keep the acknowledgement number.
Keep everything: screenshots, numbers, UPI IDs, account numbers, transaction references, links, the app's name. Do not delete chats.

The full checklist, with what to keep ready, is on what to do after a fraud. Helpline and portal checked on 12 November 2026.

Independent guide. This is not a government, bank or police website. Helplines and rules were checked at official sources on 12 November 2026; confirm on the official site before relying on them.