Hours Following Nationwide Outage, UPI System Back Online

Users were unable to complete digital transactions on 26 March's night due to a major technical problem that interrupted Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services throughout India. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which is in charge of managing UPI operations, admitted to the issue and gave users the assurance that it had been resolved. "The same has been addressed now, and the system has stabilised," the NPCI said on social media site X. NPCI further added, "We apologise for the inconvenience." Even though the disruption was only momentary, people who depend on digital payments for everyday transactions were frustrated. A number of well-known UPI applications were impacted, including Paytm, PhonePe, and Google Pay. A few banks, like ICICI Bank, continued to operate, but others, like HDFC Bank, encountered difficulties. Customers complained about unsuccessful purchases and connectivity problems in droves to Downdetector, a platform that monitors service disruptions.

What is UPI?

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) oversees the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a payment system created by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). With their phone numbers or distinct UPI IDs, individuals can send and receive money instantaneously. In contrast to other payment options such as Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) and National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT), UPI enables users and merchants to request payments by only sending a message via their banking app. The fact that UPI is completely free is one of the main factors contributing to its success. Users are not subject to extra costs from NPCI when transferring any amount of money at any time. Because there is no minimum transaction restriction, it is also frequently used for modest payments at neighbourhood stores. Furthermore, UPI has a practical AutoPay function that enables users to schedule automatic payments for subscriptions and invoices, streamlining and simplifying transactions.

Some Unknown Features of UPI?

One may have observed that several UPI apps give him distinct UPI IDs. This occurs as a result of each app processing transactions through a different banking partner. The bank that is associated with the person's account determines his UPI ID. Common UPI IDs in Google Pay, for instance, are "@oksbi", "@okhdfcbank", "@okaxis", and "@okicici".  The customer can feel secure if he is worried about the security of UPI transactions. The RBI has put strict security procedures and regulations in place to protect UPI payments, guaranteeing the protection of his money and personal information. To protect sensitive data, like user identities and transaction details, during transmission, UPI uses cutting-edge encryption technologies like TLS, AES, and PKI. Furthermore, UPI lowers the danger of data exposure and unauthorised access by using a Virtual Payment Address (VPA) in place of exchanging bank account information.

The device-specific functionality of UPI is another important security aspect. Only the registered device can access Preson's UPI account, limiting unauthorised use from other devices. In order to improve security, the RBI also implements robust authentication procedures such as biometric verification and two-factor authentication (2FA). Fraudsters can still take advantage of user weaknesses even though the NPCI guarantees strong security on their end by claiming that UPI accounts cannot be compromised. For example, in 2022, over 95,000 instances of UPI fraud were reported as a result of schemes that deceive users into disclosing sensitive information or granting access to their devices.