Sambit Patra's WhatsApp hacked; scammers demanded cash from contacts via QR code
My WhatsApp number has been hacked. After WhatsApp was hacked, people are being sent misleading messages from my number, and money is being demanded through various means, Sambit Patra wrote on X
- Jul 6, 2026,
- Updated Jul 6, 2026 1:18 PM IST
Senior BJP MP and party spokesperson Sambit Patra on Sunday said his WhatsApp account had been compromised, with fraudsters allegedly sending messages from his number seeking money from people in his contact list.
The sender sought Rs 55,000 from one of Patra's contacts and later shared a QR code linked to a person identified as Jagdish Paswan.
When the person offered to hand over the money in person instead, the sender refused and continued insisting on an online transfer, raising suspicion that Patra's WhatsApp account had been compromised.
Patra later confirmed the incident in a post on X.
"My WhatsApp number has been hacked. After WhatsApp was hacked, people are being sent misleading messages from my number, and money is being demanded through various means. Please note that all such messages are completely fake and part of cybercrime. They have nothing to do with me," he wrote.
He said he had informed senior Odisha Police officials and urged people not to respond to any messages or transfer money until his account is restored.
Patra is not the first public figure to report such an incident.
NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule and actor Swara Bhasker have also publicly said their WhatsApp accounts were compromised.
Supriya Sule's account was hacked in August 2024. The MP, who represents Baramati in Maharashtra's Pune district, in a post claimed her phone and WhatsApp account were hacked and requested people not to call or message her.
Sule said she was being blackmailed after hackers demanded $400 from her team by sending a message.
In September 2024, Bhaskar posted on X: "My WhatsApp has possibly been hacked. If anyone who is in my contacts / or not receives a message from me asking to share any code or OTP or money or anything, please DO NOT REPLY. Block that number. Trying to figure out what this is about."
Senior BJP MP and party spokesperson Sambit Patra on Sunday said his WhatsApp account had been compromised, with fraudsters allegedly sending messages from his number seeking money from people in his contact list.
The sender sought Rs 55,000 from one of Patra's contacts and later shared a QR code linked to a person identified as Jagdish Paswan.
When the person offered to hand over the money in person instead, the sender refused and continued insisting on an online transfer, raising suspicion that Patra's WhatsApp account had been compromised.
Patra later confirmed the incident in a post on X.
"My WhatsApp number has been hacked. After WhatsApp was hacked, people are being sent misleading messages from my number, and money is being demanded through various means. Please note that all such messages are completely fake and part of cybercrime. They have nothing to do with me," he wrote.
He said he had informed senior Odisha Police officials and urged people not to respond to any messages or transfer money until his account is restored.
Patra is not the first public figure to report such an incident.
NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule and actor Swara Bhasker have also publicly said their WhatsApp accounts were compromised.
Supriya Sule's account was hacked in August 2024. The MP, who represents Baramati in Maharashtra's Pune district, in a post claimed her phone and WhatsApp account were hacked and requested people not to call or message her.
Sule said she was being blackmailed after hackers demanded $400 from her team by sending a message.
In September 2024, Bhaskar posted on X: "My WhatsApp has possibly been hacked. If anyone who is in my contacts / or not receives a message from me asking to share any code or OTP or money or anything, please DO NOT REPLY. Block that number. Trying to figure out what this is about."