Several unidentified people were booked for hacking the WhatsApp account of the wife of an IPS officer and seeking money from those on her contact list, a police officer said on Monday. The accused created another account using her name, photo and phone number to carry out the crime, the officer added.

“On Friday, the 49-year-old woman received a message from one of the contact numbers saved on her mobile phone. The sender asked her to forward a six-digit code via, which she had accidentally sent. She soon received more such codes. She was logged out of her WhatsApp account and attempts to log in again were futile,” the officer said.