Affordable data packs in the world’s most populous country, starting as low as 11 rupees ($0.13) per hour, have increased internet access and created a $1 trillion mobile payments market for firms such as Paytm, Google Pay and Walmart-backed PhonePe.
But cyber literacy has lagged, leaving people vulnerable to fraud, with scammers impersonating officials or using AI to dupe unsuspecting people online, or through text messaging and mobile phone calls.
Data submitted by the finance ministry to parliament on Monday showed that people lost a combined 1.77 billion rupees ($20.3 million) to fraud in the fiscal year ended March 2024, more than double the amount of fiscal 2023.
The total number of cases where the amount involved was 100,000 rupees or more, jumped to 29,082 from 6,699 the year before, it showed.
“With increasing digital payment transactions in the country, incidences of fraudulent practices including digital payment frauds have also gone up in the last few years,” the ministry said in reply to a question in parliament.
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Increasing incidents of cybercrime have triggered action from authorities such as the telecom regulator, which ordered blacklisting spam callers, and the central bank, which has proposed allowing banks to freeze accounts suspected of being used to commit fraud. The finance ministry said that the government had published handbooks and launched media awareness campaigns, asking people to be vigilant about cybercrimes, which are constantly evolving and using new methods.
Banks have roped in Bollywood stars and celebrities to raise awareness and a fact-checking organisation has collaborated with veteran TV news anchors to popularise cybersafety among senior citizens who are considered to be particularly vulnerable.
In his monthly radio address to the nation in October, Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked about the spread of digital scams and urged people to take steps to increase their online security.
