FRAUDS WITH PLASTIC MONEY: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS IN INDIAN SCENARIO

The Financial Institutions of India and the banking sector has undergone massive revolution over the past three decades in order to cater to the banking and financial needs for all in the most efficient yet simple manners. Digitalization has enabled users to access their accounts and carry on transactions without their physical presence. But this advancement has also given rise to various crimes which exploit the linchpins and limitations of these systems. Such cyber crimes are more dangerous in nature than regular ones, as it is often difficult to track the criminals, or authorities lack the knowledge to apprehend them. Cyber criminals are coming up with innovative ideas to dupe innocent victims of their hard earned money, one of the leading methods being Card frauds, both debit and credit. There are numerous weapons in the arsenal of criminals in this respect such as skimming, card trapping, stealing, pharming, key stroke logging, phishing scams, installing malware or viruses to name a few. This paper deals with the types of card frauds with special focus in debit and credit cards that are currently plaguing India, and how to combat them.