In recent times, the surge in online scams, particularly through OTP (One Time Password) fraud, has alarmed many. Scammers, masquerading as customer service agents, have duped users by tricking them into giving away their OTPs, posing threats such as SIM blocking, bank account closure, or electricity disconnection.
However, the government, along with the Ministry of Home Affairs, SBI, Payment Services Ltd, and telecom operators, has been diligently working on a foolproof plan to curb these fraudulent activities. A new system has been introduced where the OTP transaction will only proceed if the registered bank address and the current location of the transaction match. If the locations do not match, the customer will receive a warning, and the transaction will be halted.
This new measure aims to significantly reduce the risk of online scams and ensure safer transactions for users. According to the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center (i4C), from April 2021 to December 2023, a staggering Rs. 10,319 crores were siphoned off through such frauds, with a large number of these originating from countries like China, Cambodia, and Myanmar. The calendar year 2023 alone saw nearly 1.1 million complaints related to these scams.
