Hong Kong: An Indian woman based in Hong Kong became the city's latest phone scam victim after a fraudster posing as a consulate official asked her to transfer $2,300 as part of her visa application.

The 27-year-old woman studying for a PhD reported the case to police on Friday after the Indian consulate here told her its office had not asked her to transfer any money for her application, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

The woman first received a call on Monday from someone claiming to be "a consulate staff member" and telling her she had furnished incorrect information on her visa application. She was told over the phone to transfer money to an Indian bank account.

The police described such cases involving foreign victims and fake consulate workers as rare.

"The scammer, communicating in English, told her the date of birth on her form was in the wrong format," a police source said. "She was then told to transfer the sum to an Indian bank account so that lawyers in the country could help her resolve the problem. She called the diplomatic office a few days later to check on the progress of her application. That is how she realised she'd been cheated," the source said. PTI