A Bengaluru man, Prashanth from Nayandahalli, experienced a shocking episode of cybercrime after losing cryptocurrency worth 12,484 USDT. On December 15, 2022, he was trading in cryptocurrency through the Chennai-based Giottus Technologies Pvt Ltd when he encountered server trouble and his purchase didn’t go through.
The next morning, Prashanth found that all of his cryptocurrency was missing from his account when he logged into the Giottus app. After consulting the firm’s customer care and being taken through a few steps, his efforts to recover his cryptocurrency proved to be fruitless. He then sought to claim the insurance which the company had promised when he enrolled but was denied since cyber-attacks weren’t included in the coverage.
On December 23, 2022, Prashanth lodged a complaint with the cybercrime unit of Bengaluru Police and then took the matter to the Bengaluru Urban second additional district consumer disputes redressal commission in Shantinagar. He presented his case through a chartered accountant and the lawyer representing Giottus argued that Prashanth was not a customer, was trading in cryptocurrency that wasn’t recognised by the Government of India, and had logged into the wrong website and submitted his credentials, leading to the hacking and siphoning of his cryptocurrency.
In the end, the court dismissed the case on September 19, noting that Prashanth was indeed a victim of cybercrime and the crypto company had no service deficiency.
