The Rise of Digital Payment Alternatives
Since payment alternatives such as UPI, e-wallets, and USSD-based mobile banking through different platforms are directly or indirectly linked to the user's bank account, one needs to be extra careful to keep hackers at bay. Just a few days before the Indian government initiated the demonetisation drive, pushing people to carry out banking transactions through the Internet or plastic cards, the country had seen a big financial data security breach compromising ATM pins of millions of debit card holders. While the reason for the breach was not known, banks came to the rescue after the incident broke out by asking customers to change passwords and blocking accounts on request.
With the advancement of technology, the ease of banking, from checking balance to transferring funds, using smartphones or tablets has driven people to go online more than ever. According to Reserve Bank of India data, 85% of all reported transactions at banks between 2015 and 2016 were through the Internet in terms of volume. In 2014-15, the figure stood at 75%. And now that the trend is moving towards going completely cashless, people are increasingly exploring payment alternatives such as UPI, e-wallets, and USSD-based mobile banking through different platforms, which are directly or indirectly linked to the user's bank account.
While you enjoy this newly-acquired convenience, remember that cybersecurity is something you must consider at every step you take online. Here are some steps you could take to ensure your financial data is safe.
Since payment alternatives such as UPI, e-wallets, and USSD-based mobile banking through different platforms are directly or indirectly linked to the user's bank account, one needs to be extra careful to keep hackers at bay. Just a few days before the Indian government initiated the demonetisation drive, pushing people to carry out banking transactions through the Internet or plastic cards, the country had seen a big financial data security breach compromising ATM pins of millions of debit card holders. While the reason for the breach was not known, banks came to the rescue after the incident broke out by asking customers to change passwords and blocking accounts on request.
With the advancement of technology, the ease of banking, from checking balance to transferring funds, using smartphones or tablets has driven people to go online more than ever. According to Reserve Bank of India data, 85% of all reported transactions at banks between 2015 and 2016 were through the Internet in terms of volume. In 2014-15, the figure stood at 75%. And now that the trend is moving towards going completely cashless, people are increasingly exploring payment alternatives such as UPI, e-wallets, and USSD-based mobile banking through different platforms, which are directly or indirectly linked to the user's bank account.
While you enjoy this newly-acquired convenience, remember that cybersecurity is something you must consider at every step you take online. Here are some steps you could take to ensure your financial data is safe.