Bharti Airtel MD approaches banks, NPCI to join forces against digital fraud

Telecom operator Airtel has written to over 40 banks, as well as RBI and NPCI, proposing a close collaboration and a unified front to curb digital frauds, including sharing intelligence over repositories of known fraudulent financial domains. Airtel has approached NPCI, proposing a "closer collaboration" to create a repository of known malicious financial domains to enable proactive blocking of malicious and rogue sites and to build a multi-layered defence to combat digital frauds.

 According to details first reported by The Economic Times and PTI, the idea behind Airtel’s collaborative strategy is to enable proactive blocking of malicious websites before unsuspecting users fall victim to scams.

In his communication to the NPCI, Vittal acknowledged the role of NPCI’s AI-driven real-time fraud risk monitoring systems and suggested that Airtel's own fraud detection solution could significantly complement NPCI’s ongoing efforts. The telco’s system, according to the letter, can detect and block phishing links and malicious sites at the access point itself.

"Closer collaboration between Airtel and NPCI can help create a multi-layered defence system and strengthen the overall security of India’s digital payments infrastructure," Vittal said in the letter dated May 16.

In the letter dated May 16, Airtel outlined the following key proposals -

·         Creation of a centralized fraud domain repository in partnership with NPCI and banks

·         Proactive blocking of phishing and scam sites at the network level

·         Collaborative public education campaigns on digital safety

·         Workshops to identify and co-develop counter-fraud solutions