Make safe digital payments with PhonePe

The Covid-19 pandemic has led to a phenomenal increase in the adoption of digital payments in India. Digital payment apps such as PhonePe make life easy as they no longer need to step out of their homes or stand in long queues to make payments. Using PhonePe, users can send and receive money, recharge their mobile, DTH, data cards, make utility payments, buy gold, and even pay remotely for their online purchases.

When it comes to safety, PhonePe has you triple covered, enabling crores of transactions on a daily basis without any transaction failures. The triple-layer security includes:

• Login Password: The first layer of security for the app is the login password. Your app is mapped to a particular phone and number. In case you change your phone or your number, you will have to re-authorize the app.
• PhonePe app lock: To start using the PhonePe app, you need to unlock it using your fingerprint ID, face ID or number lock.
• UPI Pin: For every payment on PhonePe, whether it is Rs.1 or Rs. 1 lakh, no payment can go through without the UPI pin.

While digital payments are safe and convenient, it is important to be aware of different types of fraud and how fraudsters are constantly finding ways to dupe users of their hard-earned money.

Types of Frauds

Here are the latest types of frauds and what you need to do to transact safely:

1. Loan Scam: Loan scamsters exploit vulnerable borrowers’ need for credit by offering a loan with the intention to dupe them. They do so by asking for an upfront amount as security — that would never be returned, or extract lump sum amounts in the name of processing fee, late fee, interest, and so on, resulting in huge losses for the victim.
2. Credit Card Bill Payment Scam: Fraudsters steal credit card information of innocent people by portraying themselves to be a distant relative/family friend/business professional in need of money. They lure them into entering their information on a fake account or website and withdraw huge amounts that are hard to trace or recover.
3. Social Media Impersonation Scam: Social media has recently become a commonplace for fraud that makes way for easy digital identity theft. Scamsters create a fake profile of you or someone you know, and use it to request money or sensitive information from people in your network. In some cases, fraudsters hack into your account to send requests to people on your list with a level of urgency that makes it impossible for innocents to refuse.
4. Money Doubling Scam: Money doubling scams are devised to make people falsely believe that they can double their money overnight. This is done by either creating a fake link that comes with a limited-period offer to double one’s money or by creating trust by doubling the victim’s money initially and ultimately looting them when they finally decide to deposit a large sum of money.
5. Job Scam: The recent rise in job seekers has made job scams a trending fraud Modus Operandi. It involves scamsters posting fake job offers online only to steal your personal information or creating fake links that lead to security breaches on your device.

Here’s what you do to stay safe, prevent fraud while continuing to enjoy the benefits of safe digital payments:

Do’s & Don’ts to Prevent Fraud

• Do not share confidential details like card number, expiry date, PIN, OTP, etc. with anyone. If you are asked for such details by anyone posing as a PhonePe representative, please ask them to send you an email. Only respond to emails from the @phonepe.com domain.
• Always remember you do not have to ‘Pay’ or enter your UPI pin to receive money on PhonePe.
• Always remember you do not need to scan a QR code to receive money on PhonePe.
• Please read the transaction message displayed on your PhonePe app carefully before hitting ‘Pay’ or entering your UPI PIN.
• Do not download and install third-party apps such as Screenshare, Anydesk, and Teamviewer
• Do not search for PhonePe customer support numbers on Google, Twitter, FB etc. The ONLY official way to reach PhonePe customer support is https://phonepe.com/en/contact_us.html
• Connect with us only on our official accounts across various social media platforms.
• Twitter handles: https://twitter.com/PhonePe_ https://twitter.com/PhonePeSupport
• Facebook account: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialPhonePe/
• Web: support.phonepe.com
• Never call/respond to unverified mobile numbers claiming to be PhonePe Support.
• Don’t click website links in any SMS or email message without verification.
• Don’t install any app based on a random caller’s advice.
• Don’t agree to minor transactions without verification.
• Don’t call a number sent through an SMS that claims to be for KYC verification.
• Don’t take calls from unknown numbers who represent themselves as banks or credit card companies.
• Don’t share personal information over text — including your government identity, your UPI ID, your bank account number, your PIN, your one-time password or your regular password.

What should you do when contacted by a Fraudster?

There are multiple ways in which a customer can raise a fraud dispute on PhonePe. These include:

1. The PhonePe app: Go to the Help section and raise an issue under the “have an issue with the transaction” option.
2. The PhonePe customer care number: You can call PhonePe customer care on 80–68727374 / 022–68727374 to raise an issue, post which the customer care agent will raise a ticket and help with your issue.
3. Webform submission: You can also raise a ticket using PhonePe’s webform — https://support.phonepe.com/
4. Social media: You can report fraudulent incidents via PhonePe’s social media handles

• Twitter — https://twitter.com/PhonePeSupport
• Facebook –https://www.facebook.com/OfficialPhonePe

5. Grievance: To report a grievance on an existing complaint, you can login to https://grievance.phonepe.com/, and share the ticket ID previously raised.

6. Cyber cell: Lastly, you can raise fraud complaints at the nearest Cyber Crime cell or register a complaint online at https://www.cybercrime.gov.in/ or contact the Cyber Crime Cell helpline on 1930.