E-push fine, but skills of cops to thwart fraud worry intel

NEW DELHI: As the Narendra Modi government encourages all to switch from cash to digital money transactions, intelligence agencies have warned of a heightened risk of cyber fraud compounded by the limited competence of various state police and law enforcement agencies to handle it.

During discussions with the government on risks associated with a 'cashless' economy, agencies are believed to have pointed out how most state police are ill-equipped and lack adequate training to prevent and investigate cyber frauds.

Ever since demonetisation forced the country to adopt digital mode of payment, the Home Ministry has been regularly holding consultations with the intelligence agencies and IT ministry on how to handle the risks that come with it. The agencies/departments concerned have been asked to warn digital wallet companies as well as online retailers to develop secure payment systems that would minimise chances of cyber attacks and net fraud.

The need for this was especially underlined in the wake of the popular ewallet company Paytm reporting cyber fraud to the tune of Rs 6 lakh.

"While the country is expected to make the big switch to digital money, the ability of the state police to handle the associated cyber risks remains in question. The police in most states do not have dedicated and trained manpower to prevent and probe online fraud. The staff manning the cyber cells, wherever they exist, is not competent to deal with the surge in cyber crime," an officer of the central security establishment told TOI. The officer said that the need for a separate, dedicated agency to prevent and probe cyber fraud was yet to be discussed, and chances are that this may happen only after the surge in cyber fraud hits home in the days and months to come.

Incidentally, there are also some misgivings in the intelligence agencies regarding the impact of demonetisation in terms of combating terrorism and local insurgencies including left-wing extremism. Senior officials said in the long run, demonetisation may not really prevent Pakistan-sponsored terrorists, who cross over with limited Indian currency and mostly survive here on local people's support, from giving shape to their terror missions. "In any case, their payments are passed on to their families in Pakistan and are not in Indian currency," said the official.