The Joint parliamentary committee on Data Protection has recommended India develop its own electronic payment network in the lines of Ripple (USA) and INSTEX (EU), which could be an alternative to the SWIFT payment system, whose privacy has been compromised widely.
Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, known as SWIFT, is based in Belgium.
"The committee observes that data protection in the financial sector is a matter of genuine concern worldwide, particularly when through the SWIFT network, privacy has been compromised widely. Indian citizens are engaged in huge cross-border payments using the same network.
The committee are of the view that an alternative to the SWIFT payment system may be developed in India which will not only ensure privacy but also give boost to the domestic economy," the committee said in its report.
It noted that after the "loans for nudes" scam in China in 2016, predatory lending applications from the neighbouring country are duping Indians who have run into a financial crisis due to the Covid-19 pandemic. These applications get access to the contacts database and gallery of phones they are installed in and use sensitive information and harass the borrower.
At least 60 such loan apps available on Google Play Store were not registered or recognised by the Reserve Bank of India as a non-banking financial company.
Google Play has several such applications owned by Chinese operators or companies including those named like other legitimate fintech companies. For instance, 'Udhaar Loan' resembles 'Udhaar', a fintech focussing on microloans, recognised by Indian government.
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(Published 16 December 2021, 13:39 IST)
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