There is no way a smartwatch can be use to scan a FASTag and deduct money from it, the National Payments Corporation of India and Paytm have said in response to a video that is being circulate widely on social media and has led to alarm in many circles.
As claims in the video, which show a child cleaning a windshield, scanning the FASTag using a smartwatch and then running away when question, are baseless and false, said NPCI, the organisation enabling digital payments and settlement systems in India. It is misinformation, added Paytm.
A similar claim about a ‘FASTag scam’ was also propound by magician and illusionist Karan Singh in an interview to content creator Vinamre Kasanaa on his Dostcast YouTube channel.
FASTag, base on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, is an electronic toll collection system made mandatory for all commercial as well as personal four-wheelers for payments at toll plazas since February last year.
While Paytm discuss only the child video in its rebuttal, NPCI discuss the larger issue of videos making fake claims.
It said the National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) FASTag ecosystem is built on a four-party model NPCI, Acquirer Bank, Issuer Bank, and Toll Plazas.
“Many layers of security protocols are place to ensure the end-to-end safe processing of transactions,” it said.
NETC FASTag operates only for Person to Merchant (P2M) transactions.
No Person to Person (P2P) transactions are facilitate through NETC FASTag Network.
This means an individual cannot receive the money in NETC FASTag ecosystem from fraudulent transactions.
