An Examination of Data Protection and Cyber Frauds in the Financial Sector
Hemant Bhanawat, Alex Khang
Abstract
Nascent and affordable mobile computing devices, reducing bandwidth costs, wide availability of wireless networking, and the pervasive use of the internet by one and all, have transformed the way of performing and operating businesses. With this proliferation of information technology and related services driven by customer preference, government digital currency and cashless transaction initiatives have led to a substantial increase in the usage of bank cards and e-wallets and other electronic currency formats in India. The Indian financial sector started competing with the global players in the industry in terms of customer service and efficiency through the deployment of technology in every spear of business operations. The banking industry which dominates the Indian financial sector as in any other country has exhibited a paradigm shift in the way banking was perceived a decade ago with IT and mobile enablement becoming the sine qua non. Much more than focusing on digitalization and computerization, financial institutions are concerned with the increase in instances of cybercrimes associated with financial frauds, data threats, and vulnerabilities. This chapter aims to introspect various aspects of cyber frauds, data security, and potential threats related to financial institutions, driving through the available literature on frameworks policies, processes to ensure that the security postures of the financial transactional infrastructure remain robust and evolve in step with a dynamic threat landscape.