The Supreme Court has expressed serious concerns about the rise in digital fraud, particularly digital arrest scams, and has directed the central government to develop a standard operating procedure to combat these crimes.
It said that when a retiree, who withdraws amounts in the range of Rs 10,000 or Rs 20,000, suddenly withdraws huge amounts, then the bank should issue an alert.
We propose an expert group be set up to form a national strategy on digital fraud. This group would bring together skills in financial regulation, security economics, cyber defence, and public communications, and an understanding of the Indian financial and security systems. It should lay the foundations of a coordinated approach by the Indian State in fighting digital fraud, suggest Ajay Shah and Nandkumar Saravade.
In today's rapidly evolving digital payment landscape, security concerns remain a top priority for stakeholders across sectors.
Only bona fide victims would be compensated by banks within five days of receiving the complaint.
It will enable real-time intel sharing among banks and other financial sector participants to strengthen customer protection against digital fraud.
The CBI has registered separate cases related to digital arrest fraud targeting a former professor and a retired gynaecologist from Gujarat, who were defrauded of a total of Rs 30 crore.
OTP scams accounted for over one-fourth of all cyber frauds.
Cyber intelligence firm CloudSEK reports that online fraudsters are using a new toolkit called 'Digital Lutera' to bypass security features of UPI apps and carry out fraudulent financial transactions.
A 64-year-old man from Thane was allegedly defrauded of 1.56 crore by cybercriminals using a 'digital arrest' scam, involving forged documents and constant surveillance.
Rajasthan Police have arrested a man allegedly involved in a large-scale fraud that collected crores in funds from people under the pretext of luxury car sales, cryptocurrency, and social media-based investment schemes.
Kanpur police have uncovered a GST fraud racket where suspects used unsuspecting individuals' documents to create fake firms and route transactions worth nearly Rs 250 crore.
Delhi Police have arrested three men and bound down a woman in connection with a cyber fraud operation that allegedly cheated a grocery shop owner of Rs 17 lakh through fake stock market investments.
The amount involved in banking system frauds surged to Rs 21,515 crore in the first half of FY26, up 30 per cent from the same period last year, even as the number of frauds fell 2.8 times to 5,092.
Benchmark lending rates unchanged with repo rate at 5.25%
'Just like oral hygiene, cyber hygiene must become a daily habit,' says Beena Vaheed, executive director, Bank of Baroda. 'It is not enough to rely only on banks, companies, or the government. Each of us must play our part.'
In the latest case, the fraudsters, posing as personnel of the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation, contacted the businessmen between August 19 to October 8 and claimed his name had cropped up in a case of money laundering.
Mastercard recently launched an authentication product called Identity Check Express that enables customers to verify transactions on their own.
The caller told the victim that a bank account linked to his mobile number had allegedly received Rs 7 crore through money laundering activities and warned that he would be arrested in the case.
Five individuals, including an electronic repair shop owner and a DJ operator, have been arrested for allegedly defrauding a 78-year-old Delhi resident of over Rs 2.19 crore through a sophisticated cyber fraud involving impersonation of law enforcement officials and a 'digital arrest'.
The Supreme Court has directed the government to raise awareness, compensate, and protect vulnerable individuals who have lost money in cyber scams. The court's remarks came while granting bail to an accused in a cybercrime case, emphasizing the need for public education and cybersecurity awareness.
The relation between a regulator and its regulated entities is collaborative and not adversarial with the common objective of maintaining the stability and credibility of the financial system. However, the action on regulated entities like penalties and business restrictions are the last resort, Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Friday.
With the restart of economic activity, fraudsters have shifted their focus to target unsuspecting people from travel and leisure, communities (online forums) and logistics sectors, a report said.
By enabling real-time data sharing, the platform will help prevent scams and ensure secure transactions.
'Digital arrests are the cutting edge of the problem and the most challenging part of the ecosystem right now.'
The agency also ran a parallel investigation into cyber-slavery and the organised digital exploitation networks in Southeast Asia, with slave compounds in Myanmar and neighbouring areas, that are emerging as incubators for the execution of such frauds.
An 83-year-old Pune resident died of a heart attack after being defrauded of Rs 1.2 crore in a 'digital arrest' scam. Fraudsters posing as police and CBI personnel targeted the man and his wife, threatening them with arrest in a money laundering case.
Kota City Police have arrested an alleged mastermind of an inter-state employment racket accused of defrauding over 8,500 people by promising work-from-home opportunities.
Senior citizens are particularly vulnerable due to their high savings, trust in authorities, and limited familiarity with online frauds.
Police in Himachal Pradesh have arrested five individuals for allegedly assaulting a man and forcing him to transfer money via UPI.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested Ayush Varshney, co-founder of Darwin Labs, in connection with the 200 million Gain Bitcoin cryptocurrency scam. Varshney was apprehended while attempting to flee the country.
The CBI has filed a chargesheet against 17 people, including four Chinese nationals, and 58 companies for their alleged roles in a transnational cyber fraud network that siphoned off over Rs 1,000 crore.
The missive has, however, polarised stakeholders, with mobile operators under COAI coming out in its support, while digital platforms under the aegis of Broadband India Forum expressing "serious concerns" around overreach and calling for a pause in implementation of timelines.
The Supreme Court has directed the CBI to conduct a pan-India investigation into digital arrest scams and questioned the RBI about its lack of AI usage in detecting and freezing accounts used by cybercriminals.
Fraud reported by banks declined in 2024-2025 to 23,953 as compared to 36,060 in the previous year though the amount involved jumped to Rs 36,014 crore from Rs 12,230 crore.
Sebi Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey announced intensified surveillance and technology-driven enforcement to combat pre-investment scams targeting retail investors, who are increasingly being lured by fake trading apps and promises of high returns.
'Look at what kind of sites the child is visiting, what kind of games they are playing and then tell them about the pitfalls.' 'After the child sleeps, parents can check the history of sites visited and block sites that could be dangerous or inappropriate.'
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These losses increase insurance premiums for customers and reduce insurer margins on the other.
India launches AI-driven SPEEED platform to track athlete performance, predict injuries, tackle age fraud and revolutionise sports science nationwide.
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