Scammers posing as an NFT art dealer targeted a 71-year-old digital artist in India, resulting in significant financial loss. The artist, known as Shivaprasad R, a practicing chartered accountant, lost INR 1.58 lakhs (approximately $1895) in fees to the scammers, who promised to purchase his artwork.

Shivaprasad, whose art has been showcased in local exhibitions and on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook, encountered the scammers in October 2023. They presented themselves as NFT art dealers and introduced him to a platform named nfttradeplace.com.

Under the guise of buying his paintings for 42 ETH, equivalent to INR 1.09 crore, the scammers engaged in virtual negotiations with Shivaprasad via email and Facebook. He listed three of his artworks for 10 ETH each and another for 12 ETH. However, on February 1, 2024, the scammers requested a "gas fee" of 0.115 ETH from him.

Using a crypto wallet set up at the scammers' direction, Shivaprasad made the payment. Despite completing his first sale, when he attempted to withdraw 6 ETH from his earnings, no transaction occurred. Upon inquiry, he was asked to pay a "delay fee," which was not previously mentioned on the website.

Unable to pay in ETH, Shivaprasad requested to settle the fee in fiat currency. The scammers agreed, and he made four payments to accounts belonging to individuals named Mohammed Ekramul Haque and Mohammad Farooq, though their involvement in the scam remains unconfirmed.

Shivaprasad's last payment to the scammers was made on March 15. It became evident that he had been duped when the platform repeatedly demanded additional payments to process his withdrawal. On April 17, he reported the incident to the cyber police and filed charges under relevant sections of the Information Technology Act and the Indian Penal Code.

Despite increased scrutiny by local authorities, cryptocurrency scams persist in India. Recently, the Enforcement Directorate launched an investigation into an $800 million Ponzi scheme involving a Bollywood celebrity. Additionally, a job recruitment scam targeted victims' crypto wallets using spyware disguised as essential onboarding applications.