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As we close 2021, at Security Boulevard we wanted to highlight the most popular items of the year. Here is the next in our series of the best of 2021.
With the significant increase in the use of digital systems over the years, there has been a rapid increase in cyber fraud around the world. Cybercriminals have become much more sophisticated, making it harder for organizations to defend themselves against cyber threats.
As technology advances, we rely on the Internet even more today. Everything we do can be done online, including work, play, shopping, and banking. The Internet has made everyday tasks much easier.
However, it has also led to a drastic increase in cybercrimes around the world. Seeing how Indians started doing more online banking transactions, the number of online banking frauds in India has increased dramatically.
According to the RBI’s annual report, Bank frauds of 100,000 and over more than doubled in value to 1.85 lakh crore in FY20, from 71,500 crore in FY19. As well, the number of such cases increased by 28% over the same period.
However, the financial industry has made constant efforts to secure systems and users. But malicious actors deceive people on the Internet by various means to steal their money or sensitive information.
According to a report According to Hindustan Times, India lost a total of 615.39 crore in more than 1.17 online bank fraud cases from April 2009 to September 2019. The occurrence of these frauds spread over a decade. But the banking industry is witnessing a significant increase in the number of online banking frauds.
“There was a concentration of high value frauds, with the top 50 credit-related frauds accounting for 76% of the total amount reported as fraud in 2019-2020. Incidents related to other banking areas, such as off-balance sheet and foreign exchange transactions, decreased in 2019-20“, says RBI.
“₹ 129 crores were lost in the last three months of 2019 and a total of 21,041 such cases were recorded in those three months“, Anurag Thakur, MoS, Ministry of Finance told Lok Sabha in reference to a recent online fraud in India.
How to prevent online banking fraud?
Consumers are not the only ones who face online fraud. With the growing number of data breaches and fraudulent emails targeting retailers and organizations, businesses are increasingly vulnerable to online fraud.
Becoming the target or victim of such fraud does not only disrupt business operations. It also causes the organization to lose customer trust, brand reputation and sensitive data.
It is therefore essential that organizations adopt certain cybersecurity measures to avoid learning an expensive lesson, which can often lead to more serious consequences.
Best practices for preventing online banking fraud:
- Separate financial data
Organizations should use a separate system dedicated to performing financial transactions and regularly backing up data to an external drive. Plus, restrict or limit access to financial information and data.
Banks never ask for personal information over the phone, email or text. Therefore, avoid sharing your organization’s PINs, passwords, or financial information without proper verification.
Create a strict password policy to avoid risks of password sharing at work. In addition, never leave files containing access to financial information in an unsecured location. Additionally, make sure you always leave your computer locked when it is not being monitored.
- Manage user authentication
Restrict email addresses / IP locations to only allow authorized users to transact on behalf of the organization. Make purchases only from authorized and legitimate websites and regularly review the organization’s financial statements.
Educate employees on cybersecurity awareness with tools such as ThreatCop. It helps to simulate cyber attacks to check the number of vulnerable employees in your organization and train them accordingly.
Providing this training allows employees to become familiar with the attacks and gives them the knowledge of what needs to be done when such attacks occur.
Where to report online fraud in India?
If you did not take the precautions and became a victim, it is strongly recommended that you immediately file a complaint with the local police or cybercrime authorities.
In addition, as soon as you realize that a suspicious transaction has been made from your bank account or debit / credit card, immediately notify the affected bank.
Online banking scams and frauds are constantly evolving and increasing rapidly over the years in India. Organizations should come up with more comprehensive and complex cybersecurity measures to protect the business and customers.
Additionally, every industry should embrace a culture that adhering to cybersecurity protocols is not a necessity, but an obligation.
Turn your employees into a shield against cyberthreats
Make your employees proactive against common cyber attacks with ThreatCop!
The publication The Rising Online Banking Frauds in India first appeared on the Kratikal blog.
*** This is a syndicated Security Bloggers Network blog from Kratikal Blog written by Richard Singha. Read the original post at: https://www.kratikal.com/blog/the-rising-online-banking-frauds-in-india/
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