CMAI asks govt to enact laws for digital payments

Amid fears of increasing cyber frauds following the push for cashless economy, an industry body has asked the government to enact separate digital payment laws and ensure mandatory cyber audit.

The CMAI Association of India -- Communication Multimedia and Infrastructure (CMAI) also pitched for an appropriate strategy for reporting losses and recovery of money lost by digital payment companies and also by citizens.

CMAI President Prof N K Goyal said India does not have proper laws in dealing with digital payments.

“All cases of money lost in digital payments may not fall in the category of cyber thefts or breaches. With proliferations of digital payments across India in big and small towns, there may be widespread cases of small amounts here and there throughout the country,” Goyal said.

To address them in timely manner, he said, CMAI suggested that there is a need for separate digital payment laws and digital payment courts across India.

He said India needs to add 20 lakh new PoS (point of sale) machines in quick time to give push to cashless transactions. In this scenario, he said, data safety and e-frauds need to be addressed by the government, as e-payments and cashless transactions continue to rise in India.

While supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s push for a cashless economy, the CMAI said there was a need to give a push to domestic manufacturing of PoS machines and its software development too under the Make in India programme.