As digital payments continue to expand across India, cyber-enabled financial fraud has also witnessed a steady rise. According to data shared by the Ministry of Finance in the Rajya Sabha, more than 5.83 lakh digital payment fraud cases were reported across the country between FY2021-22 and September FY2025-26, resulting in losses of ₹3,588.22 crore. However, banks and financial institutions were able to recover only ₹238.83 crore for victims during the same period, highlighting the significant challenge of recovering funds lost in cyber fraud.
Government data shows that credit card and internet banking frauds accounted for the majority of reported incidents. Credit card fraud recorded 2,43,849 cases involving losses of ₹1,447.27 crore, while internet banking fraud emerged as the largest category by value, with 2,42,562 cases resulting in losses of ₹1,730.14 crore. The figures indicate that the increasing adoption of digital banking services has also created greater opportunities for cybercriminals.
Debit and ATM card frauds ranked as the third-largest category, with 94,991 reported cases involving ₹401.17 crore in losses. In contrast, Unified Payments Interface (UPI), despite being India’s most widely used digital payment platform, recorded only 457 reported fraud cases amounting to ₹2.13 crore during the period. Meanwhile, Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS) and other Aadhaar-related payment frauds accounted for 1,346 cases involving ₹1.06 crore. Other payment channels, including wallets, prepaid cards, IMPS, NEFT and RTGS, contributed a relatively small share of the overall fraud value.
Responding to questions on the growing incidence of cyber financial fraud and the vulnerability of senior citizens, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary informed Parliament that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released a discussion paper in April 2026 titled Exploring Safeguards in Digital Payments to Curb Frauds. The paper highlights the increasing incidence of Authorised Push Payment (APP) frauds, where criminals use social engineering tactics to manipulate victims into voluntarily transferring money. The RBI has proposed additional safeguards for vulnerable customer segments undertaking specified digital payment transactions.
According to renowned cybercrime expert and former IPS officer Prof. Triveni Singh, most digital financial frauds today are driven not by technical vulnerabilities but by social engineering. Cybercriminals often impersonate bank officials, government authorities, investment advisers or technical support representatives to gain the trust of victims before persuading them to share OTPs, banking credentials or transfer money themselves. He said that stronger technological safeguards, public awareness and immediate action on suspicious transactions remain the most effective strategies for preventing cybercrime.
The government also informed Parliament that there is no centralised mechanism to track expenditure on cyber fraud awareness campaigns. Nevertheless, the RBI, commercial banks and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) have undertaken several initiatives to educate consumers. The RBI has conducted 1,489 Electronic Banking Awareness and Training (e-BAAT) programmes, while banks and the central bank continue to run awareness campaigns against money mule accounts and other cyber frauds through television, print media, SMS and social media platforms.
NPCI is also conducting its multilingual “Main Moorkh Nahi Hun” campaign to promote digital payment safety among consumers in both rural and urban areas. Experts believe that as digital payments continue to grow rapidly, strengthening cyber security measures, enhancing consumer awareness, improving real-time fraud monitoring and fostering closer coordination among financial institutions will be essential. These measures are expected to reduce cyber fraud, improve fund recovery for victims and reinforce public confidence in India’s rapidly expanding digital payment ecosystem.
