The email was fake, but the money was real. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited or HAL lost $63,000 or Rs 55 lakh to cyber fraud.
HAL Kanpur’s Additional General Manager, Ashok Kumar Singh, filed a police complaint on March 13. The police have registered a case under the IT Act as the company fell victim to an online scam.
In May 2024, HAL sought a price quotation for three fighter aircraft parts from a US-based company. The company responded and then they carried the conversation over mail. Somewhere along the way, a fake email entered the conversation.
“HAL got in touch with a US company, PS Engineering Incorporated, to buy aircraft parts. When the talks began there was a legitimate email ID. Somewhere in the middle, the proper email was replaced with a fake one. There was only one difference between the two IDs: the missing letter ‘e’,” said DCP crime Anjali Vishwakarma.
“Due to this mistake being overlooked, HAL made the payment in a wrong account which was not the account of the proper vendor. When the vendor said that he did not receive any payment, then this fraud came into limelight. In this, HAL has paid approximately $63,000 i.e. Rs 55 lakh in a fraud account,” said the police officer.
The police officer further said that it is not clear if another US-based company defrauded HAL or if it was an Indian entity.
(With inputs from Arun Agarwal)
