Fake hotel website or travel agent collects advance payment — no room exists on arrival
Fraudsters clone OYO, MakeMyTrip, and Booking.com portals or create fake Google Maps hotel listings to collect 100% advance UPI payments. Victims arrive at hotels with no booking. 127 complaints in 5 days in Jaipur alone; an ₹85 crore MakeMyTrip clone gang was busted in Muzaffarnagar.
Also known as: fake hotel booking website India, OYO clone scam, MakeMyTrip fake website fraud, fake travel agent WhatsApp, advance hotel payment fraud India
Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes
Call 1930 now- 1 Call 1930 — the national cyber-crime helpline — right now. The sooner you report, the better the chance of freezing the money before it moves.
- 2 Call your bank to freeze the account and block the card immediately. Use the number printed on your card, never a number from the message or caller.
- 3 File a report at cybercrime.gov.in and keep every message, screenshot, and transaction ID.
What to do right now
- 1 Book hotels only through the hotel's official website (found on Google's knowledge panel for the hotel) or an OTA you trust (confirmed URL) — never via a Google Maps phone number or WhatsApp
- 2 Always verify the exact URL: MakeMyTrip is makemytrip.com, OYO is oyorooms.com — close tabs showing any variation
- 3 Before paying any travel agent on WhatsApp, search the travel agency name on MCA21 or Google with 'scam' to verify legitimacy
- 4 Pay only via payment gateway on the official OTA or hotel site — never to a personal UPI number or QR code an agent sends
- 5 If you already paid and suspect fraud, file a complaint at https://cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930, and contact your bank to dispute the UPI transaction
- 6 Report at https://cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930 (national cyber helpline).
Red flags
- ⚠ Hotel booking website URL has a subtle typo or extra word (oyo-deals.in, makemytrip-offer.com, bookings-hotels.in) — always verify the exact URL before paying
- ⚠ Price is 30–60% cheaper than other platforms with a countdown timer or 'only 2 rooms left' urgency message
- ⚠ Payment is requested to a personal UPI ID (PhonePe, GPay number) rather than a verified business account or payment gateway
- ⚠ Customer care number found on Google Maps for a hotel leads to a person who asks for advance payment to 'hold the room'
- ⚠ Travel agent on WhatsApp sends a professional-looking PDF itinerary or confirmation before you receive the booking confirmation on the actual hotel's system
- ⚠ No cancellation policy is shown or the agent says payment is non-refundable for 'confirmed availability'
Sources
- The420.in — Hotel Booking Fraud: Fake Websites And Advance Payment Scams On The Rise
- The420.in — Your Dream Vacation Could End in Fraud: Jaipur cyber alert, 127 complaints, ₹66 lakh loss (August 2026)
- PrimeInfoServ — ₹85 Crore Fake MakeMyTrip Website Fraud in Muzaffarnagar
- News4Hackers — Hotel Booking Scams: Fake Websites and Advance Payment Frauds on the Rise
- Deccan Herald — Goa: Four fraudsters held for duping tourists through online booking of non-existent villas
- Tribune India — Two Rajasthan natives nabbed for online hotel booking fraud
- I4C / Tribune India — Centre alerts public about online booking scams targeting pilgrims and tourists