MUMBAI (Reuters) – The governor of India’s central bank delivered a cautionary message to financial institutions on Friday regarding the increasing prevalence of fraudulent activities in digital payment systems. He announced that the regulator will be launching secure website domain names as a preventive measure to combat such illicit practices.
Expressing deep concern over the surge in digital payment fraud cases, Sanjay Malhotra, the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, underscored the urgent need for action. The evolving landscape of technology adoption by Indian banks and consumers has heightened the vulnerabilities to cyber attacks, digital fraud, data breaches, and operational breakdowns. The RBI has been consistently advising financial institutions to be vigilant against the growing risks associated with cyber security threats.
Fraudsters commonly exploit the use of counterfeit domain names to trick unsuspecting individuals into divulging sensitive information or engaging in fraudulent transactions. This deceptive tactic relies on users failing to detect the subtle discrepancies in the domain names employed by legitimate financial entities. In contrast, the introduction of exclusive internet domain names serves to establish a distinct online identity for organizations, thereby bolstering their visibility and trustworthiness.
Governor Malhotra disclosed that the RBI is set to introduce a unique domain name ‘bank.in’ for banks, while non-bank entities in the financial sector will be allotted the domain name ‘fin.in’. The Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT) will serve as the sole registrar for these exclusive domain names, with the registration process slated to commence in April 2025.
(Reporting by Siddhi Nayak; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)
