Ransomware Attack Cripples 300 Indian Banks

A ransomware attack on Wednesday, July 31, disrupted services at nearly 300 small Indian local banks. The attack targeted C-Edge Technologies, a company providing tech support to small banks across India. C-Edge Technologies is a joint venture between the State Bank of India (SBI) and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS).

The attack caused significant service outages, preventing bank customers from withdrawing money from ATMs or using Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services. Rural and cooperative banks, which rely heavily on C-Edge, were the most affected.

As a precaution, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which oversees UPI, temporarily disconnected C-Edge from retail payment systems. NPCI stated, “C-Edge Technologies has possibly been impacted by a ransomware attack affecting a few of their systems.”

Efforts to restore banking services were underway, with authorities working urgently to resolve the issue. News agency PTI reported that services were expected to resume by Thursday, August 1, if everything proceeded as planned. A third-party audit was also conducted following the attack.

During the isolation period, NPCI noted that customers of banks serviced by C-Edge would be unable to access payment systems. An unnamed source mentioned to Hindustan Times that the impact would be limited, affecting only about 0.5 percent of the country’s payment system volumes.

Dileep Sanghani, chairman of the National Cooperative Union of India and the Amreli District Central Cooperative Bank, reported that the 300 banks, including 17 district cooperative banks in Gujarat, had been experiencing issues for the past two to three days. He explained, “All online transactions, such as RTGS and UPI payments, are affected. Money is deducted from the sender’s account but does not get credited to the receiver’s account.”