Security concerns in the new "less-cash" economy

One of the undisputed benefits of the recent demonetisation exercise has been the concerted push towards digitisation of cash transactions. Concomitant with this development has been the rapid growth in the use of smart devices, primarily mobile phones. Though digital payment systems have been in existence for a while, the last few weeks have witnessed an explosive growth in their use. While many welcome the idea of trackable, transparent and frictionless monetary transactions, there are significant risks associated with moving to these systems. In a population that is largely illiterate or technologically naive, this creates a challenge for policy-makers and system providers alike.

*Pronab Mohanty is the other author of this article.