Social Engineering and Payment Platforms: Rising Threats in Cybersecurity

• •Social engineering exploits customer intent, complicating fraud prevention.
• •46.7% of financial institutions still use SMS OTPs, despite low consumer confidence.
• •India's digital payments ecosystem processed over 23.2 billion transactions in May 2026.

The cybersecurity landscape for banks and payment platforms is evolving, with social engineering and AI-generated scams becoming prevalent. Financial institutions face challenges as fraudsters manipulate legitimate customers into authorizing fraudulent transactions. Recent statistics show that 46.7% of financial institutions still rely on SMS OTPs for authentication, despite only 18.2% of consumers considering them secure. In India, the digital payments ecosystem processed over 23.2 billion transactions in May 2026, making it a prime target for cybercriminals. The Reserve Bank of India reported that digital payment frauds are the largest category of fraud cases, with vishing and phishing being significant methods. The attack surface is expanding to APIs and cloud infrastructures, necessitating proactive cybersecurity measures. Continuous threat monitoring and stronger identity controls are essential for payment platforms to mitigate risks.