Upendra, wife Priyanka appeal to public after phones hacked
Kannada film star Upendra and his wife, actress Priyanka Upendra, became victims of a cybercrime after their mobile phones were hacked by fraudsters on Monday. The couple lodged a complaint at the Cyber Crime Police Station in the central division, while also issuing a public appeal through social media urging people not to transfer money if approached in their names.
According to their statement, the incident began when Priyanka received a suspicious call from an individual claiming difficulty in delivering an order. The caller asked her to dial a specific number to confirm the delivery. Once she complied, her phone was hacked. Concerned about potential issues, Priyanka attempted to check the matter by calling the same number from her husband’s phone and that of a family acquaintance, Mahadev. Both devices were compromised in the process. Following the breach, several of their contacts began receiving WhatsApp messages requesting urgent financial help. “Three or four of our acquaintances, including my son, transferred around ₹50,000 after receiving such messages. Please don’t send money to anyone claiming to be us,” Upendra clarified in his appeal.
Priyanka added that the situation unfolded quickly when she mistook the fraudulent call for a genuine delivery query. “He later messaged our contacts saying, ‘I need money urgently, I will return it within two hours.’ Please don’t fall for such requests,” she urged. The police have initiated a probe into the hacking incident. Meanwhile, the actors requested the public to spread awareness and remain cautious against such scams.
