RBI proposes new safeguards to curb rising digital payment frauds | Current Affairs | Vision IAS

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In Summary

  • Digital fraud cases surged from 2.6 lakh in 2021 to 28 lakhs in 2025, totaling ₹22,931 crore, impacting vulnerable groups like senior citizens.
  • RBI proposed measures like a 1-hour delay for transfers over ₹10,000, whitelisting for authentic transactions, and additional authentication for vulnerable users.
  • Initiatives include two-factor authentication, card controls, Mulehunter.AI for detecting mule accounts, and a Digital Payment Intelligence Platform prototype using AI/ML.

In Summary

It has released a Discussion Paper on “Exploring Safeguards in Digital Payments to Curb Frauds”.

Status of Digital Frauds 

  • Rising digital frauds: According to National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal Data, cyber fraud cases have risen from 2.6 lakh in 2021 to around 28 lakhs in 2025 - amounting to 22,931 crore rupees. 
  • Fraud Techniques: Use of bogus call centres, deepfake-driven impersonation scams, social engineering and mule account networks.
    • Victims are manipulated using social engineering and they themselves initiate and authenticate transactions, leading to ‘Authorised’ Push-Payment (APP) frauds.
  • Victim Profile: Disproportionate impact on vulnerable groups, especially senior citizens.

RBI’s Suggested Measures

  • Time lag: 1-hour delay for transfers above ₹10,000 and payer can cancel payment within this window.
    • A whitelisting mechanism will ensure that such time lag is bypassed for authentic transactions. 
  • Additional authentication for vulnerable users: High-value payments by senior citizens/divyang need approval from a trusted person.
  • User control features: Option to switch on/off payment modes and set transaction limits.
  • Curb mule accounts: Large credits allowed only after additional scrutiny of accounts.

 

RBI Initiatives to Curb Digital Frauds

  • Payment Authentication: Two Factor Authentication mandated in digital payment transactions.
  • Card Controls: Device Tokenisation, Card-on-file Tokenisation, and Customer induced control in cards.
  • Removing Mule Accounts: Mulehunter.AI, developed by Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH), to enable quick and effective detection of mule bank accounts.
  • Digital Payment Intelligence Platform (DPIP): Development of DPIP prototype by harnessing advanced technologies (AI/ML) to mitigate payment fraud risks.
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RELATED TERMS

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Card-on-file Tokenisation

A tokenization method where a card's details are replaced with a token that can be securely stored by merchants for future transactions, enhancing security by not storing the actual card number on the merchant's servers.

Device Tokenisation

A security measure in digital payments where sensitive card details are replaced with a unique token associated with a specific device, preventing the actual card number from being exposed during transactions.

Two Factor Authentication (2FA)

A security process that requires users to provide two different authentication factors to verify their identity, commonly used in digital transactions to enhance security by adding an extra layer of protection beyond just a password.

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