In a historic decision to keep a check on black money and corruption, India’s PM Narendra Modi hit the right chord by announcing demonetization of INR 1000 and INR 500 notes from November 8 last year.
This, however, had mixed reactions among the citizens of India including common people as well as high trade business. The only happy people listening to this are the founders of the digital wallet platform. They have been flying high since the announcement was made.
E-wallet platforms like Freecharge, Paytm, Mobikwik, as well as Pay U India, have witnessed a 1000% growth in their business in the last few months. India targets to become a cashless country and the country is already moving towards it.
Meanwhile, post Demonetization, the country had given an equal opportunity for the cyber criminals to create havoc. As the technology is completely new, it is prone to many undiscovered attack vectors. While the use of online payments has gone up recently, the incidences of fraudulent misuse of payment networks and data theft had also grown.
There are a few steps to ensure a strong digital architecture such as platforms encrypting, tokenizing and authenticated transactions to ensure security. Reserve Bank Of India had already made authentication mandatory and hence we have a majority of platforms are having a 2-way authentication process.
Most interestingly, most of the digital payments solutions providers stick to ‘PCIDSS’ (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) in order to ensure standardized security.
Instead of outsourcing, certain payments gateways have come up with their proprietary risk managements and anti-fraud solutions. Small online merchants can be provided with these anti-fraud solutions so that they can grow their revenues without having a high incidence of fraudulent transactions from buyers.
Some Important Tips For The Consumers:
1) Do not share your card data or password with anyone.
2) Once in every six months change your password.
3) Be alert while transacting so that any unusual activity can be spotted.
4) Do not let your debit/credit card out of your sight. Instead, ask for the terminal to be brought to you.
5) Do not share your account numbers on phone.
6) Carry your cards separately. Do not keep them in the purse. You can minimize your loss if someone steals your purse.
7) During a transaction, keep an eye on the card. Make sure you get back your card before leaving the place of payment.
8) Sign your new cards whenever you get them. Do not write you card numbers on the envelope.
Well, online marketplaces will continue to be the prime target for cyber criminals. Therefore, security measures should be embedded at every step.
