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By:

Bhaskar Nath Biswal

13 May 2026 at 8:30:30 pm

E-Commerce’s Hidden Threat

The modern Indian marketplace no longer echoes exclusively with the chaotic bustle of traditional bazaars. Instead, it thrives within the silent, instantaneous clicks of smartphone screens. From monthly groceries to high-end electronics, digital retail has fundamentally altered how households across the country consume goods. This transition has undoubtedly unleashed unprecedented convenience, democratizing access to products for millions living outside metro cities. However, this...

E-Commerce’s Hidden Threat

The modern Indian marketplace no longer echoes exclusively with the chaotic bustle of traditional bazaars. Instead, it thrives within the silent, instantaneous clicks of smartphone screens. From monthly groceries to high-end electronics, digital retail has fundamentally altered how households across the country consume goods. This transition has undoubtedly unleashed unprecedented convenience, democratizing access to products for millions living outside metro cities. However, this hyper-connected landscape has also exposed a deeply troubling reality. As digital storefronts expand, so does the shadowy ecosystem of cybercriminals eager to exploit the trust and vulnerabilities of unsuspecting shoppers. The digital transaction, once celebrated as a triumph of modern engineering, is increasingly fraught with unseen hazards. Protecting consumers from e-shopping fraud has now become an urgent national imperative. Fraud Surge The sheer scale of India’s e-commerce revolution provides vital context for why online shopping has become such a high-stakes arena. Recent market estimates indicate that India’s e-commerce economy has surged well beyond $140 billion, driven by over 300 million active digital shoppers. Projections show this user base rapidly swelling toward 400 million, largely fuelled by deep internet penetration, affordable smart phones and seamless payment infrastructure like the Unified Payments Interface across Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Yet, this remarkable surge in commercial volume has been mirrored by an equally dramatic escalation in cybercrime statistics. Official records from the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal reveal that citizens have filed over 3.8 million cyber fraud complaints, representing staggering financial losses exceeding Rs. 36,000 crore, with a significant portion stemming from fraudulent online retail schemes. Perhaps most alarming is the historical recovery rate, where less than one percent of stolen funds is successfully returned to victims once transactions cross cyber borders. Despite the pervasive presence of online threats, digital consumers frequently fall into predictable traps that expose them to severe risk. A primary misstep is the failure to maintain basic password hygiene, with millions of shoppers reusing weak or identical passwords across multiple e-commerce platforms and email accounts, enabling attackers to execute swift cascading breaches. Furthermore, shoppers frequently bypass critical verification steps in pursuit of speed, such as failing to verify whether a website domain uses secure, encrypted connections before typing in card credentials. Another widespread oversight is performing financial transactions over unsecured public Wi-Fi networks in cafes or transport hubs, which allows bad actors to intercept sensitive data packets in transit. Many consumers also neglect regular software updates on their smartphones, leaving unpatched security vulnerabilities wide open to malware. Above all, emotional urgency remains the greatest weakness. Impulsive buyers frequently ignore glaring red flags, such as suspicious payment requests or unverified seller profiles. Decoding Scams Recognizing that awareness is the frontline of defence, key industry players and digital safety advocates have begun taking structured action. A prominent example is the consumer handbook, ‘Your Guide to Safe Online Shopping’, developed by Safer Internet India and commissioned by Amazon. The initiative aims to demystify complex cyber security concepts and provide consumers with actionable, real-world tools to navigate the digital marketplace safely. The handbook shines a bright light on the most prevalent fraudulent tactics currently plaguing buyers. To combat these threats, the safety guide emphasizes a multi-layered approach to consumer protection. It urges shoppers to verify web addresses meticulously, refrain from sharing one-time passwords and avoid conducting transactions off authorized brand platforms. Equally important, the guide bridges the gap between technical vigilance and legal empowerment by outlining explicit consumer rights under Indian laws and detailing formal grievance redressal mechanisms. A sustainable defence against online shopping fraud requires an integrated, multi-stakeholder strategy that aligns consumer awareness, corporate accountability and robust law enforcement. E-commerce platforms must continue investing aggressively in advanced artificial intelligence tools to detect cloned websites, eliminate fake merchant accounts and intercept suspicious payment flows before they reach consumers. Concurrently, regulatory authorities and law enforcement agencies must strengthen real-time intervention frameworks, expanding initiatives like the 1930 cyber crime helpline and emergency account-freezing protocols to minimize financial damage when breaches happen. On the demand side, continuous public awareness campaigns, modelled after comprehensive handbooks, must reach deep into semi-urban and rural regions where first-time internet users are most susceptible to manipulation. Ultimately, building a safe digital shopping environment is about preserving trust. Only when digital literacy keeps pace with technological innovation can India truly reap the economic rewards of its e-commerce revolution without sacrificing the security of its citizens. (The writer is a former college Principal and Founder of Supporting Shoulders, an Odisha-based non-profit Trust. Views personal.)

Blade Hype

The Maharashtra government has trumpeted the acquisition of 18th C. Maratha leader Raghuji Bhosale’s sword from a London auction house as a “historic victory.” Cultural Affairs Minister Ashish Shelar flew to Britain to collect the artefact, which will arrive in Mumbai on August 18 under police escort and motorcycle convoy, culminating in a public celebration at a cultural academy. A similar swell of fanfare had attended the government’s earlier retrieval (on loan) of a wagh nakh (tiger claw) from the Victoria and Albert Museum, supposedly used by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to kill Afzal Khan.


Both episodes have been dressed up as moments of political and cultural triumph. The rhetoric is thick with the language of victory, honour and “bringing home” lost treasures. Yet there is less here for the state to pat itself on the back about than the breathless tone suggests. The sword was not secured through some deft diplomatic manoeuvre or a concession from a reluctant foreign power. It was purchased at an open auction in Britain, just as any wealthy collector or institution could have done. The wagh nakh, too, was not really ‘reclaimed’; it remains the property of the V&A and is in India only on a fixed-term loan. Diplomatic repatriations of cultural heritage, whether India’s retrieval of the Koh-i-Noor were it ever to occur, or Greece’s campaign for the Elgin Marbles, are hard-fought and symbolically charged affairs requiring years of negotiation. Winning an auction is essentially a commercial transaction. The notion that Maharashtra’s ministers achieved some great diplomatic breakthrough is overblown.


As for the wagh nakh, even the V&A had admitted that it was not possible to verify that the claws on display are the very ones used by Shivaji Maharaj in one his most famous exploits. Accounts suggest multiple tiger claws were associated with the episode, and at least three other sets in Satara have laid similar claims. The history of such acquisitions in India is littered with instances where artefacts, once triumphantly unveiled, are relegated to poorly lit display cases or locked storage rooms. If these treasures are to have meaning beyond a week’s headlines, they require more than ceremonial receptions. Proper conservation, detailed historical interpretation and serious public engagement are needed. Without such efforts, they risk becoming props in a passing political spectacle.


This is especially important given Maharashtra’s habit of conflating cultural heritage with political theatre. Raghuji Bhosale’s campaigns in Bengal, Odisha and southern India were significant military achievements, and his Firangi sword is a rare and exquisite example of cross-cultural craftsmanship in the 18th century. But heritage is not well served by bombast. Cultural treasures gain their true value not from the manner in which they are acquired, but from how they are cared for, interpreted and made relevant to the present. Maharashtra’s leaders have been quick to celebrate their role in securing these objects. The harder task is to ensure they serve as living links to history rather than trophies gathering dust.


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