As every coin has two faces, technology has its good and bad aspects. While the internet and digital technology have helped in making life more convenient, yet these also are the means of cybercrimes. Online fraud is a cybercrime that makes use of the internet and provides incorrect information to the victims to trick them into giving money.

With the increase in digital payments, frauds related to these payments have also been growing. Payment links are the most common source of fraud. While using online payments, the fraud is done by sharing payment links with the victims who are then pursued to pay by offering them greed for lottery winning, cashback, and offers, flat discounts,and more. The victims of online fraud are most commonly the people who are new to digital payment, have weak passwords, and are non-alert regarding the fraud payment links.

How to stay away from payments links scams while doing online payment?

You can always avoid getting tricked into online payment scams by staying alert and following safety tips. Some of the safety tips to help you safeguard against payment links scam are:

  1. Never share your OTP

While making an online payment, the app from which an individual pays asks for the OTP which is sent to his registered number in confirmation that it was only him/her while making payment. This OTP should not be sent to anyone and needs to be kept personalized.

  1. Never accept a payment request from an advertisement

The online fraudsters send a payment request link for tricking the individuals by sending these links on their UPI app. These links have been sent in the form of social engineering which means that the victims have been manipulated or tricked to make security mistakes and provide their personal information. As one clicks on this payment link UPI will ask for the PIN and when the PIN is entered the money gets transferred into the fraudster’s account and the money gets stolen from the victim’s account.

  1. Connect only with official helpline numbers

For any query regarding the online payment, only connect to the official helpline numbers provided by the payment app and never disclose any personal information without confirming that there is an authorized person on the helpline number. Ensure that you must share your concern and personal bank details with the relevant person.

  1. Stay away from unauthorized payment apps

While starting the digital payment only use the apps which are authorized by the official authorities of the government. Before using the app, confirm and collect all the information about the app such as how to use it, payment methods, security systems, and more.

  1. Set a strong password

Using any of the payment apps, it is always recommended to set a strong password so that it cannot be accessed easily by others. And the password must be kept only up to the user and must not be shared with others. It is advised that your password must have an upper case letter, lowercase letter, number, and special character.

  1. Avoid engaging with strangers

While doing any of the online transactions, never engage with strangers. Avoid paying any amount or sharing the personal information on online mode to any unknown person or irrelevant source. 

It is important to understand the cruciality of following precautionary measures while making payments online because online payments are here to stay and you will make use of them one time or later. It is the need of the hour to take strict action against online payment frauds and for businesses to use secure online payment gateways for payment links such as https://www.cashfree.com/payment-links. Due to this, online fraud can be minimized to the maximum possible extent and people would not be required to bear heavy losses.