Bhavnagar: The cooperative banking sector in the district was thrown into turmoil after a major cyber fraud of more than Rs 7 crore was detected in the Bhavnagar District Cooperative Bank, following an alleged hacking of the bank’s software system. Following the incident, the bank has temporarily suspended operations across all branches in the district, and a team of officials along with technical experts has gone to Gandhinagar to file a formal complaint and seek assistance in the investigation.

According to bank officials, the fraud took place through the Sidsar, Subhashnagar, Bharatnagar and Talaja branches, where unauthorized transactions were carried out after the bank’s data security system was compromised.

Bank Chairman Rasikbhai Bhingradia said the fraud came to light on Monday morning during routine checks. He said that normally transactions worth Rs 70–80 lakh are recorded during holidays through mobile banking, but when staff checked the system at around 10:00 am on Monday, the transaction amount was showing more than Rs 7 crore.

He said that upon further verification, officials noticed that withdrawals were taking place continuously within short intervals. The software company was immediately informed and the bank’s system was shut down, but by then the fraudulent transactions had already been carried out through the four branches.

Bhingradia said the bank approached the Bhavnagar Superintendent of Police, but as cybercrime investigation facilities are mainly available in Gandhinagar, the bank’s team has gone there with technical experts to lodge a detailed complaint. He added that preliminary investigation suggests the fraud was linked to a software vulnerability, and the bank’s internal officials did not have control over the main software keys, which are handled by the software provider.

Software company responsible, says General Manager

Bank General Manager J.K. Kevadia said the fraud occurred on Sunday when the bank was closed. An unknown hacker allegedly accessed the software system and carried out around 1,170 NEFT transactions through four accounts.

He said the matter was immediately reported to the Infra Software Company, whose technical team has started investigating the breach. The banks where the money was transferred have been informed, and steps have been taken to freeze the accounts.

Kevadia said the bank believes the breach occurred due to a defect in the software system and the responsibility lies with the software company. He added that the bank’s funds are insured, and the loss will be recovered as per rules.

Farmers may face difficulties due to suspension of operations

Chairman Bhingradia said the bank has stopped its operations temporarily due to the cyber fraud, which may cause inconvenience to farmers and account holders. Bank officials said efforts are underway to restore services after securing the system and completing the preliminary investigation.