Centre cautions against illegal payment gateways

The Ministry of Home Affairs has cautioned the public against illegal payment gateways using “mule accounts” for facilitating money laundering services in the wake of rising incidents of cyber frauds.

Some of the suspected payment gateways are PeacePay, RTX Pay, PocoPay and RPP. These gateways are allegedly providing money laundering as a service and are operated by foreign nationals, sources said.

The Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) — the Home Ministry’s cybercrime arm — said it was revealed during the recent nationwide raids by the Gujarat Police and the Andhra Pradesh Police that transnational criminals had created illegal digital payment gateways using mule or rented accounts.

It has advised citizens not to “sell or give on rent” their bank accounts, company registration certificate or Aadhaar registration certificate. Citizens can report cybercrime on helpline number 1930 or www.cybercrime.gov.in and follow “CyberDost” channels.