IIT Madras study finds educated professionals also vulnerable to cyber fraud

Being highly educated or digitally experienced does not necessarily protect people from financial cyber fraud, a study by researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has found.

The research examined the experiences of 33 financial cybercrime victims and found that those targeted included IT professionals, bankers, doctors, management and finance professionals, public-sector officers and people with cybersecurity certifications.

The findings challenge the assumption that cyber fraud primarily affects people who lack digital or financial awareness. Instead, the researchers found that circumstances and psychological pressure can influence how people respond when confronted by fraud.

Fear and urgency can affect decision-making

The researchers found that victims were often targeted during periods of personal or professional stress, including illness in the family, retirement, job searches and pressure at work.

Fraudsters used fear, expectations of financial gain and concerns about reputation to create situations in which victims found it difficult to assess the situation calmly.

The researchers described this phenomenon as an “engineered brain freeze”, with some victims reporting a state in which their ability to think clearly was affected during the fraud.

The study draws on psychological factors including fear, urgency and coercion to explain how victims can become vulnerable even when they have considerable digital experience.

Losses ranged from thousands to over Rs 1 crore

The financial impact varied substantially among the cases studied. Victims reported losing amounts ranging from a few thousand rupees to more than Rs 1 crore.

The consequences were not limited to financial losses. Participants also reported experiences including shame, sleep problems, depression and loss of trust within their families. The researchers noted that the effects could continue after the fraud itself, particularly when victims encountered inconsistent responses from institutions.

Study based on 33 victims

The research involved semi-structured interviews with 33 victims, comprising 22 men and 11 women. Twelve participants were senior citizens.

The interviews were conducted in Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, New Delhi and Mumbai in English, Hindi and Tamil. The researchers analysed the responses using the Gioia methodology.

The study was led by P Kandaswamy, IPS (Retd), and Nandan Sudarsanam of IIT Madras, with Akanksha Jaiswal of the University of Western Australia, Chennai Campus, and Ameeta Fernando of Loyola Institute of Business Administration as collaborators. The research received support from the Wadhwani School of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence at IIT Madras.

Researchers call for stronger institutional response

The researchers said preventing financial cybercrime requires more than generic digital-literacy messaging.

The study identified differences in the responses of banks and cybercrime authorities across cases, with some responding quickly while others faced limitations involving technical capabilities and coordination.

The researchers called for stronger systems for detecting fraudulent transactions early, faster intervention and better coordination among banks, law-enforcement agencies and other institutions involved in responding to cybercrime.

The study also highlights the importance of understanding the circumstances in which victims are targeted, rather than viewing cyber fraud only as a problem of inadequate digital awareness.

The research was published in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications in June 2026. The authors describe it as a qualitative study and note the need for broader research to examine these patterns across different populations and locations.