Malware threatens India’s mobile banking revolution
Friday, January 26, 2018
Mobile banking is growing fast in India, with smartphone sales exploding and the Modi government pushing digital payments.
But as more Indians move to electronic transactions, concerns are growing about the security of the banking system and smartphones in general.
There were around 156 million payments made through mobile phones in India in November last year, hitting a record for the second straight month, according to the central bank.
Digital transactions, currently running around 900 billion rupees ($14 billion) a month, are a tempting target for cyberthieves, who have created malware targeting digital banking customers.
India’s shift to a cashless economy got a big push in November 2016, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi suddenly announced that 500 rupee and 1,000 rupee bank notes — nearly 90% of the paper money in circulation — were to be scrapped.
Photo courtesy of Meena Kadri.
Source: Nikkei Asian Review (link opens in a new window)
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