This week’s OSIN report highlights the Financial Fraud Numbers in the Reserve Bank of India’s annual report for 2022-2023. The overall value of frauds reported by Indian banks was reduced by half from FY22 to FY23. However, the value and volume of digital frauds using cards and internet-based payments nearly doubled in the previous financial year. Fraud cases in Public Sector Banks represent 25% of the overall cases but the amount involved in those cases represent approximately 70% of the total fraud. Delays in fraud identification and reporting was also observed with 94.5% of the frauds reported in FY23 by value occurred in previous financial years.

Experts highlight that fraudsters employ new techniques such as phishing, malware, fishing, SIM cloning, and fake UPI handles on social media. They trick customers into revealing account details or downloading applications to monitor their devices remotely. Some scams involve transferring money to intermediary accounts.