PromptPay launch marks new era of digital economy
Cyber security will gain more prominence as the government prepares to introduce the country’s first major electronic payment platform in the first quarter of 2017 to pave the way for a new era of digital economy and society.
Called PromptPay, the e-payment infrastructure requires all recipients of government welfare to register with commercial banks to get the monthly allowance directly from state agencies using either a mobile phone number or an individual bank account.
This will start with elderly and baby welfare programmes before PromptPay is expanded to cover other e-payment activities in the public as well as private sector.
In following stages, this nationwide financial infrastructure will allow money transfers at low or no cost among individuals and enterprises, ushering in the new era of digital economy.
Mobile phones will become the wallets while less cash will be used.
Such a widespread use of electronic money, mobile banking and Internet banking services, among others, will boost consumer convenience and national economic competitiveness, but cyber security remains a significant challenge.
Over the past years, news headlines show multiple ATMs of Government Savings Bank were hacked and millions of baht stolen, while some users of mobile and Internet banking services reported their passwords and identities were stolen.
In other words, there are quite a number of bad guys in cyber space ready to abuse the new eco-system.
As a result, banks and other enterprises need to step up their cyber security precautionary measures to cope with problems from these cyber criminals while consumers need more public education on how best to protect their confidential data, identities and passwords.
The PromptPay service will serve as a major test for the effectiveness of existing security measures to prevent fraud and other cyber crimes.
Unless consumers are reassured that the new e-payment eco-system is safe and their money is not going to be stolen, authorities will find it difficult to turn the e-payment service into a successful new foundation of the digital economy.
Efficient, effective and secured e-payment is a prerequisite for an e-commerce boom which is inevitable if Thailand is going to be a real digital economic power house in the near future.
Meanwhile, banks and other financial institutions are exploring ways to better manage their risks associated with the emerging digital economy while insurance companies are formulating new coverage on cyber risks to make the pros and cons of digitalisation more manageable.