Reserve Bank of India (RBI) considered establishing a Digital India Trust Agency (DIGITA) to combat cyber fraud and illegal lending apps, based on media reports from Sunday.
The central financial body will verify digital lending apps and maintain a public register of verified ones. Applications without DIGITA’s signature should be considered unauthorized by law enforcement. DIGITA will be responsible for vetting digital lending apps, fostering transparency and accountability, according to media reports.
In February, the Department of Financial Services (DFS) discussed cyber security in the financial services sector, including the increasing incidents of recent online financial frauds, the growing trend of digital payment frauds, and the readiness of all stakeholders in this regard.
In late 2023, with the increasing trend of digital payment scams and pondering on a targeted method to reduce such cyber-attacks and frauds, the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center (I4C), Ministry of Home Affairs delivered a presentation on digital payment fraud statistics from the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP).
During the deliberation, it was noted that 70 lakh mobile connections implicated in cybercrime/financial frauds identified through digital intelligence platforms were removed, benefiting 3.5 lakh victims and saving ₹900 crore ($107.9 million) in defrauded money.
According to research from CloudSEK, Chinese cybercriminals launder money using fraudulent payment gateways that exploit India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
On September 8, CloudSEK said a group of cybercriminals targeted India’s financial ecosystem and began advertising a malicious app impersonating a Tamil Nadu-based bank with revenue of $23 million.
At the point of conversion, $1 = ₹ 83.40
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