RBI cautions public on digital frauds

Mumbai: Worried over a spurt in digital frauds in recent years, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Monday asked people to never share confidential banking information like OTP and CVV, and observe cyber hygiene practices.

In a publication titled 'BE(A)WARE - A booklet on Modus Operandi of Financial Frauds', the RBI said fraudsters have been using innovative methods to defraud the common people of their hard-earned money, especially the new entrants who are not entirely familiar with the techno-financial ecosystem.

Issued in public interest, the RBI booklet provides details of commonly observed modus operandi, precautions to be taken against fraudulent transactions and digital hygiene to be followed by the public. Based on an analysis of complaints of frauds, the RBI said "sharing of confidential information by the customers, knowingly or unknowingly, is one of the major causes leading to the financial frauds."

The RBI asked the public to never share confidential details like user name, password, card details, CVV and OTP with anyone, even their own family members and friends. It added that bank officials, financial institutions, RBI or other genuine entities do not ask customers to share confidential information.

Imposters, the RBI said, often pressurise and trick customers into sharing confidential details such as passwords, OTP, PIN, CVV etc by citing an urgency, such as the need to block an unauthorised transaction, payment required to stop some penalty, or an attractive discount. These credentials are then used to defraud the customers. The RBI also asked the customers not to click on unknown and unverified links and immediately delete such SMS or email sent by unknown senders to avoid accessing them by mistake in future.

"Always go to the official website of your bank / service provider. Carefully verify the website details especially where it requires entering financial credentials. Check for the secure sign (https with a padlock symbol) on the website before entering secure credentials," it said.

It advised the public not to download applications from any unverified or unknown source or on being guided by an unknown person. "As a prudent practice before downloading, check on the publishers / owners of the app being downloaded as well as its user ratings etc. While downloading an application, check the permission/s and the access to your data it seeks, such as contacts, photographs, etc. Only give those permissions which are absolutely required to use the desired application," the RBI said.