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‘Info & cyber insecurity’ biggest risk in biz ops: Survey
NEW DELHI: Information & cyber insecurity are considered as the biggest risk in 2017, and there has been an increase in the incidence of cyber-attacks and potential espionage on cyber-security in the recent past.
The FICCI – Pinkerton India Risk Survey 2017 says: ‘Information & Cyber Insecurity’ has become more pronounced due to the shift that the nation is undergoing towards digitisation of various assets and services being delivered via internet and mobile platforms; and the ever-present loopholes that hackers breach upon’.
The survey consists of 12 risks that pose the most significant threats to business perception and operations in the country. The new age risks are interconnected and overlap across domains, sectors and geographies. New risks have been identified on the basis of this year’s survey, which include: risk of non-compliance, business investment risk and legal regulatory risk.
The survey says ‘The WannaCry malware incident has been, by far, the worst incident this year in which several systems were attacked, both of the public and the private sectors.’ It stressed the need to create robust security mechanism to address cyber-security challenge.
Intellectual Property (IP) theft climbed a level to the tenth rank this time. India’s position in the US Special 301 list does not put India in the most favourable position. On the issues of counterfeit and piracy of films, music and, software, the illegal activities are still prevalent.
‘Terrorism and Insurgency’ risk rising up two spots from its position last year has been ranked as the second biggest threat to businesses in India this year. India has been featured 16 times in Global Terrorism Index in the list of 10 countries most affected by terrorism for the period 2000-2016. Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) perpetrated by communist terrorist groups remains the most severe terrorist threat. The persistent risk posed by ‘Terrorism and Insurgencies’, creates a risk perception in the minds of investors with interest in the Indian market.
The ranking of ‘Corruption, Bribery & Corporate Frauds’ is at number 3 in IRS 2017. As per World Bank’s Doing Business 2017 rankings, India currently stands at 130 out of 189 countries.
Interestingly, there is an overall sense of lowering corruption via regulations such as GST, Demonetisation, Make in India, the Digital India Program. However, the nature of corruption is such that it refuses to be completely removed.
Other risks in that order are: Natural Hazards, Political & Governance Instability. Fire, Strikes, Closures & Unrest, Crime, Business Espionage, Women’s Safety and Accidents.
FICCI secretary-general A Didar Singh said, “Risks to business establishments is detrimental to growth and development of any country. The nature of risks globally has changed enormously, and with their occurrences becoming more unexpected and their effects becoming more profound, risks need to be taken more seriously. In these changing times it is critical to understand emerging risks”
Pinkerton MD – India APAC & EMEA — global screening Rohit Karnatak added, “The threats faced in today’s dynamic environment requires a more holistic strategic approach and thus emphasizes the urgency to shift from a siloed approach to security management, to one that is more holistic and a more collaborative process of Enterprise Risk Management”.
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PNB partners Kiwi to launch credit-enabled UPI for users
Targets 180 million customers; RuPay card offers 0.5 per cent to 1.5 per cent cashback
MUMBAI: Swipe, tap, or scan credit is quietly slipping into the rhythm of everyday payments, and Punjab National Bank wants in on the action. The state-run lender has partnered with Kiwi to roll out credit-enabled UPI payments for its 180 million customers, marking a significant push to blend traditional banking with India’s fast-evolving digital payments ecosystem.
At the centre of the collaboration is the launch of the PNB Kiwi Credit Card on the RuPay network. The card is designed with a digital-first approach, offering fully online onboarding and seamless integration with UPI, allowing users to transact via scan-and-pay while accessing credit.
The offering also brings in a rewards layer, with cashback ranging from 0.5 per cent to 1.5 per cent on online transactions, positioning the product as both a convenience play and a spending incentive.
The move comes as UPI continues to dominate India’s digital payments landscape, increasingly blurring the lines between debit-led transactions and credit access. For PNB, which operates over 10,000 branches around 60 per cent in semi-urban and rural areas, the partnership signals a targeted effort to extend formal credit to segments that have traditionally remained underserved.
The collaboration also reflects a broader industry shift, where banks and fintech platforms are converging to embed credit directly into payment flows, reducing friction while expanding access.
With RuPay credit cards gaining traction and UPI evolving beyond peer-to-peer transfers, the PNB–Kiwi tie-up positions both players at the intersection of scale, accessibility, and the next phase of digital finance in India.
