A chartered accountant in Bengaluru saw deepfake videos on Facebook of well-known business leaders promoting a stock investment platform. He filled in a form, and a woman calling on WhatsApp from a UK number, who said she was a financial adviser, got him to register and invest ₹21,010.

A dashboard showed his money growing. Over the next weeks he paid ₹23.2 lakh in all. When he tried to withdraw, he was refused or asked for "taxes" and other charges first.

The lesson: a celebrity video selling returns, followed by a WhatsApp call from a foreign number, is a scam however professional it looks. Being a finance professional is no protection.