The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has introduced a new analytical tool—Financial Fraud Risk Indicator (FRI)—to strengthen cyber fraud prevention across India’s financial ecosystem. Developed as part of the Digital Intelligence Platform (DIP), the tool helps banks, fintech companies, and UPI service providers assess mobile number-based financial risk and take proactive action against fraudulent transactions.
FRI classifies mobile numbers into three risk categories—Medium, High, and Very High—based on a multi-dimensional analysis of fraud-related indicators. The tool is designed to support real-time risk assessment and enable institutions to protect customers by blocking or flagging suspicious activity before transactions are completed.
PhonePe, Paytm, Google Pay among early adopters
According to the DoT, leading UPI platforms such as PhonePe, Paytm, and Google Pay—which collectively handle over 90% of UPI transactions in India—have begun integrating FRI alerts into their systems.
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PhonePe, as an initial adopter, has implemented FRI by automatically declining transactions linked to Very High risk mobile numbers and displaying alerts under its PhonePe Protect feature. For Medium risk numbers, the platform is working on showing proactive warnings before allowing the transaction.
Data-driven risk signals from multiple stakeholders
The FRI classification is based on real-time inputs gathered from sources including the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP), DoT’s Chakshu platform, and intelligence shared by banks and financial entities. These signals help identify phone numbers misused in cybercrime, especially those that have been disconnected due to fraud, verification failure, or excessive use.
The DoT notes that cybercriminals often misuse mobile numbers for only a few days, making it crucial to flag risk before full verification is completed. With FRI, any mobile number flagged by a stakeholder undergoes multi-dimensional analysis, and its risk level is instantly shared across DIP-integrated platforms.
By enabling faster intelligence sharing and risk classification, FRI is expected to significantly enhance India’s cyber fraud response infrastructure and build greater trust in digital financial transactions.
