“Civil society group requests RBI Governor’s banking security audit details.”

Bank Bachao Desh Bachao Manch, a civil society forum, has reached out to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor, Shaktikanta Das, with several requests related to enhancing the security of the Indian banking system. The forum represents various sections of society and is concerned about the rising cases of online bank frauds, particularly those involving the misuse of biometric data from Aadhaar cards.

The forum has made the following key appeals to the RBI Governor:

1. Independent IS Auditors for Banks: They have urged the RBI to appoint independent Information Security (IS) auditors for all banks. These auditors would conduct thorough investigations into the security measures of banks, especially those offering mobile banking apps. This step aims to uncover any vulnerabilities and improve customer deposit safety by making the entire industry more sensitive to security issues.
2. Preventing Malpractices: The forum has also called for clear instructions to be issued to all banks, discouraging them from setting unrealistic targets for their branch staff. Unrealistic targets can sometimes lead to unethical practices in a bid to meet these targets, which can put customer deposits at risk.
3. Scrutinizing Business Correspondents: The forum has requested that banks investigate the operations of business correspondents. These are individuals or entities who help open bank accounts, especially in remote areas. The concern is that some of these correspondents may engage in fraudulent activities, such as tampering with biometric customer details during the account-opening process.

The forum argues that one of the primary reasons behind the increasing bank frauds, where Aadhaar-related biometric data is misused, is the haste of various banks to onboard customers onto mobile banking apps through business correspondents and their own employees. This process has made customers vulnerable to substantial financial losses due to fraudulent activities.

In simple terms, the civil society forum is asking the RBI Governor to take steps to ensure the security and integrity of the banking system. They want independent auditors to investigate banks’ security practices, discourage practices that could put customer deposits at risk, and closely monitor the activities of business correspondents to prevent fraudulent actions, especially when handling sensitive customer information.

These measures are essential to protect the interests of bank customers and maintain trust in the banking system.