Cracking down on potential financial fraud, India has taken action against 7 million mobile numbers due to suspicious activity

Cracking down on individuals involved in financial fraud, India has blocked 7 million mobile numbers due to suspicious activity, as stated by the financial services secretary on Tuesday. 

After chairing a meeting on financial cyber security and online fraud issues, the closure of "mule accounts" and mentioned cooperation challenges among banks. 

The meeting, attended by representatives from RBI, TRAI, and economic affairs and revenue departments, addressed the need to secure Aadhaar data to prevent misuse.

Related to the sudden transactions in active accounts, some restrictions have been applied. For instance, if the balance was Rs. 50, but suddenly Rs. 50,000 came into that account, it was decided in the meeting that there should be restrictions at the time of withdrawal.

I4C is currently in regular communication with NPCI, certain banks, and the telecom department. However, there is a requirement for seamless access to all stakeholders on a unified platform, and I4C serves as the nodal agency under MHA for handling cybercrimes.

The telecom secretary informed in the meeting that 7 million mobile numbers involved in suspicious activity, some monitored by them (telecom) and some by I4C, have been blocked.

Through I4C, a total of Rs. 900 crore has been blocked since 2021 from 0.35 million individuals. Specifically, Rs. 600 crore was blocked this year. Banks have received instructions to minimize the response time gap for fraud alerts, ensuring prompt corrective action within the crucial golden period.

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