The digital payment service is due to be formally launched in India this month
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has asked National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) for further details about WhatsApp's digital payment service, reported The Economic Times.
The digital payment service is due to be formally launched in India this month.
The ministry has raised questions on whether WhatsApp is following the two-factor authentication norms as directed by the Reserve Bank of India. It has also expressed concerns over management of user data. The ministry has asked details about the data storage policy of the American service and how user data will be shared with its parent company — Facebook.
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The ministry had sought a similar clarification before as well. However, it was not satisfied with their initial response. "The department was not very convinced with the response from NPCI, so it has (again) asked explicit questions," a government official told the paper.
On the basis of its first response, the ministry has also asked the NPCI about the kind of information that can and the ones that cannot be shared.
The ministry has sent the second letter to enquire about RBI's data localisation policy, which was announced after the first letter was sent. The policy mandates all payment service providers to store data on servers within India. "We are asking them to respond more clearly on how they will ensure that adequate measures are taken to store data in India," the official told the paper.
While responding to a query, a spokesperson for WhatsApp declined to comment as the firm was still beta-testing the digital payment platform.