krishnarajpr (n/a) 24 September 2009

Illegal fund tranfer from Savings Bank account

Dear Seniors,

I am describing below an incident and request your comments and guidance on how to proceed.

This relates to one of my collegue.(Staff)

The staff has a salary account with ICICI BANK LTD., aided with debit card, internet banking. He has also registered his mobile number for any transaction alerts.

Last month, one day by around 10 PM he has received a call from MUMBAI ICICI BANK clarifying whether he has made any fund transfer to a value of Rs.39500. Immediately he has said "NO". Again after 10 he has received another call from the bank asking him to lodge a complaint with Customer care as there has been a fund transfer effected from his account to another account on the previous day.

It is later (Next day) found out that there has been a fund transfer without the staff knowledge using his internet banking facility. The transfer has been done to another ICICI account at Pune at around 12.30 pm. An amount of Rs.2000 has been withdrawn from an ATM at Pune from the transfered account and in another 1 hour, there has been a withdrawal using a self cheque from the transfered account a sum of Rs.37500 from a bank at Nagpur.

The bank do not have any explanation for this expect that YOUR INTERNET BANKING FACILITY HAS BEEN AXED BY ANOTHER PERSON. YOU HAVE NOT BEEN CAUTIOUS WHILE USING INTERNET BANKING. BANK IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS.

Please tell me, whether we can hold the Bank responsible for this and if so what is the procedure.

Regards,

Krishanraj P R

Chennai.

Reply Follow

13 Replies

(Guest)

Lodge a complain to the Ombudsman.

A Mishra (Director) 24 September 2009

Please lodge a FIR stating these facts and lodge a civil suit for recovery of the amount along with a consumer complaint against the bank.You can also lodge a complaint with RBI against the bank.In all of the proposed action you can array bank as a party.

Mr_chamku (HR) 24 September 2009

Hi

Mr A Mishra Is correct.

1. FIR

2. Consumer compliant or civil suite against bank & bank manager

3. RBI (very imp do not skip it in any condition)

adv. rajeev ( rajoo ) (practicing advocate) 25 September 2009

Ur a consmer of the bank. In your case bank negligence is more. Issue notice to the bank to credit the amount to your a/c, if they failed you can file a consumer case in the consumer forum.

PJANARDHANA REDDY (ADVOCATE & DIRECTOR) 25 September 2009

DEAR U HAVE D FOLLOWING ALL OPTIONS TO PROCEED LEGALLY::

1.COMPLAINT TO CUSTOMER CARE WITH A WEEK TIME TO REVERSE FUNDS

2. BANKING UMBUDSMAN IN RBI

3.CONSUMER FORUM DISTRICT

4.CIVIL SUIT

5.FIR IN PS OF BANK JURISDICTION

6.IF POLICE R SILENT ,CRIMINAL CASE IN JMM ETC.,

Isaac Gabriel (Advocate) 27 September 2009

This is one among the online frauds and the cyber criminals axes the username and passwords clandestinely to commit such crimes.It could be located through the cyber crime investigation agencies by launching complaints.

J. P. Shah (RTI & CONSUMER ACTIVIST) 12 October 2009

pL VISIT JPS50 files on this portal where I have posted a file containing guidelines for problems with the banks.

J. P. Shah (RTI & CONSUMER ACTIVIST) 12 October 2009

It is available at https://www.lawyersclubindia.com/share_files/files_display.asp?files_id=2013

Ya_Ta (Software Professional) 25 January 2010

A Revese Incidence happened with me,not fully same but.

i m posting details in new thread.

check it out too

CS Pooja (Company Secretary) 25 January 2010

I see the problem as an informative one than panic-stricken...

Since it is an online transfer, hence to which Bank Account, the funds have been transmitted, is known (and transaction ID created).

1. As per ICICI Bank Internet Banking (I don’t know about other Banks), in case you are transferring funds to an account for the first time, you need to add the person as payee. For which, ICICI will send you a sms containing the password on your registered mobile no. with the Bank. The same password confirms the payee. And after that, with your Transaction password and Debit Card details, the transaction is completed.

Hence, a complex process is involved while transferring the money for the first time in an account.

Also, ICICI banking site will tell you when the last time when you had logged in.

2. There is possibility that the fund transfer is made to an account that doesn’t belong to the culprit, but the ATM and cheque book of which is too stolen (as self cheque is used to withdraw money)

Plus, the details of Self cheque so used will also be available with ICICI Nagpur Branch.

3. Since the other account too was ICICI’s, it would be very easily to trace the details like Name, Address, and other details of the account (like if that is also a salary account, where the person was working, or from which ATM were the maximum withdrawals made from that account etc)

4. In case a transaction is made online, the same is complete with a click of a button (From one ICICI to another ICICI Bank)

Receiving a call from ICICI Bank about the same is suspicious.

5. It will be better to take help of ICICI Bank first, and holding them responsible for it later, as ICICI is the best (and only) source to provide you the information.

As, we always have the option of going through the legal route of FIR, Consumer compliant or civil suite against bank & bank manager, RBI etc....

Ya_Ta (Software Professional) 25 January 2010

as per my experince banks are not ur frined

they will not help u.

read TOS fisrt before going to bank.

krishnarajpr (n/a) 28 January 2010

Thanks seniors for your suggestions. In fact, in this particular case, just before the illegal transfer, they culprit has sent a msg to bank (pretending to be to the owner of the account after having entered into the mirror website) to stop sms alert!!

Any way, the bank has helped to some extent of providing the details of the account to whom the amount has been transferred.

Finally, good luck to my staff, the ICICI has come out of its own to refund the entire money taking a moral responsibility but not accepting it openly. They have taken an indenmnity from the employee as if he has divulged the account details to the culprit unknowingly and to keep up the good will and as a gesture, the bank have ageed to refund and infact given credit of the entire amount today.

Thanking you once again for your support.

Krishnaraj P R

9840355204