InfoSec Concept

E-wallet Security

Mobile smart devices and mobile internet have changed the way we do things and how we connect with other people. With no doubt we can say that Smartphone has become a crucial part for our life. It has reached a state where it plays an important role in making our personal and professional lives easier. It also brought in remarkable changes in banking sector and also in the way we transact money online. When it comes to making payments in Cyberspace, there are many terms that are associated with it. The most commonly used ones are Virtual Payments, Virtual Currencies, e-wallets, Mobile Payments, etc. The boom in e-wallet transactions has been triggered by the rise tin E-commerce through mobiles, emergence of cheaper internet access and increasing mobile penetration.

More precisely we can say that an e-wallet refers to the method of transacting money online by making use of apps. It can be used in conjunction with mobile payment systems that allow customers to pay for purchases with their smart phones using QR codes, Unified payment Interface etc. An individual’s bank account can be linked to these e- wallets to do the payments online.

Digital revolution has transformed every walk of our life ushering us into a new information age. Digitization has introduced us to new phase of cashless transactions making fiscal transactions seamless, transparent, safe and incredibly convenient. Right from shopping at big shopping malls to small scale vendors people are now using various available digital payment methods in India. e-wallets is one such digital payment method which gained immense popularity driven by ease of use, discounts and ubiquitous payment. According to the statistics projected by ‘statista’ the volume of mobile wallet transactions is projected to reach about 260 billion in 2022 from about 600 million transactions in 2016.

The risk of hacking will only grow as more and more people hop on to the digital platform. In view of rise in cyber frauds focusing on the prevailing digital payment methods, most of the e- wallets have incorporated strong security standards like encryption, biometric safeguards, and multifactor authentication etc. In spite of these measures e-wallets are potential target for hackers and possess the risk of security breach and fraud to the user. As responsible cyber user it is important to be aware of the different ways frauds can happen while using e-wallets.

The current newsletter educates its readers with the current cyber threats and vulnerabilities affecting e-wallets and the best practices that can be followed by the user to remain safe.

Message from
E Magesh, Director, C-DAC Hyderabad

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