Mumbai-Based Comedian Flags E-Challan Scam, Exposes Fake Website That Looks Real: "Terrible"

A Mumbai-based comedian has shared an incident when he, almost, fell victim to a 'sophisticated' e-challan scam, where fraudsters created a fake portal mimicking the official Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) website. The comedian, whose name is Shridhar V, posted screenshots on X (formerly Twitter), which showed a message about a pending challan.

The fake portal, designed to look authentic, tricked the comedian into entering personal and financial details. The scammers aimed at stealing sensitive information and money.

The screenshot showed a text message for a fake speeding challan. Notably, the message was from a normal 10-digit number. He clicked on the link, and the URL of this page was 'echallan.pasvahan.icu', but the 'echallan.parivahan.gov.in'. The spelling or parivahan was also wrong on the fake portal as it was 'pasvahan'.

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See the post here:

Who says Indians are not innovative? Look at the sophistication of this scam 😱 I almost entered my card details before googling the domain. Insane amount of fraud must be happening with so many people. By the time police starts acting on it, they'd make millions! Terrible 😠 pic.twitter.com/KZyg6R4RnI

— Shridhar V (@iimcomic) January 17, 2026

"Who says Indians are not innovative? Look at the sophistication of this scam. I almost entered my card details before googling the domain. Insane amount of fraud must be happening with so many people. By the time police starts acting on it, they'd make millions! Terrible," the comedian wrote.

Such scams have become so common in India, attempting to dupe hundreds of people every day. To curb such activities, the authorities advise citizens to verify such messages through official channels and avoid sharing personal details on unverified websites. Always check the URL and ensure it's the official MoRTH website (.gov.in domain).

Social Media Reaction

The post resonated with many on social media, with some users sharing their personal experiences, while other suggesting what not to do in such a scenario. "Not sure why you would click that link which obviously is explicit that it is a scam. I receive this regularly and I ignore this. But I understand how some people might fall prey. Good to put this out," one user praised Shridhar for highlighting the issue, while some simply suggested to always check the number, as the government will never send such messaged using normal numbers.

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"Before any technical Attribution, its not fair to label this scam as 'Indian' origin. Hint: Call the person who has sent you SMS, he will not he aware that he has sent the message!" another user wrote in the comment section.

"Didn't you check whether pics are uploaded or not ? They won't be having your bike or car pics. Police always upload. Simple as that. But i wonder how they integrate payment gateway," another user added.

"Yes. I almost did the same last week. Felt something amiss and tried verifying and realised that it's a fake one. However got duped of Rs 999 with a fake HSRP number plate website," a fourth user shared their ordeal.