RBI Proposes New Digital Fraud Safeguards

The Reserve Bank of India has proposed four additional safety measures to strengthen customer protection and reduce losses arising from digital payment fraud.

The proposals form part of a discussion paper issued by the central bank. The RBI invited public comments and feedback through its Connect 2 Regulate platform until May 8, 2026.

According to data from the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, around 28 lakh cyber fraud cases involving ₹22,931 crore were reported during 2025. The scale of these losses has increased the urgency for stronger preventive controls across digital banking channels.

One proposal introduces a one-hour cooling period for digital payments exceeding ₹10,000. During this period, the customer’s account would be provisionally debited, but the payer would retain the option to cancel the transaction for any reason.

This measure could help customers stop payments made under fraud, coercion, impersonation or mistaken instructions before the money is finally transferred.

The RBI has also proposed an additional authentication layer for senior citizens and persons with disabilities. Under this arrangement, a trusted person could be authorised to approve high-value transactions, providing another safeguard against financial exploitation.

A third proposal would give customers account-level controls over digital payment facilities. Customers could switch individual payment channels on or off and set separate limits for different transaction types across their accounts.

The fourth measure seeks to curb the misuse of bank accounts as money mules. The RBI has proposed limiting aggregate credits into certain accounts unless the bank conducts an additional review and confirms that a satisfactory business relationship exists.

The proposed safeguards could improve customer control, strengthen fraud detection and make it more difficult for criminals to rapidly transfer stolen funds. However, banks would need to ensure that the measures are implemented without creating unnecessary delays for genuine customers.