Government unveils new legislation to regulate online loan apps

NEW DELHI: Union Minister of State for IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar has announced that a law will soon be introduced to regulate online loan apps. This comes in response to a situation where online apps clearly played a role in an incident where a couple tragically took their own lives along with their children in Kadamakudi, Kochi.

The current IT Act has limitations when it comes to regulating online apps. Therefore, a new law will be enacted with provisions to take action against illegal apps available on the Play Store. A list of online loan apps approved by the Reserve Bank will also be made available to the public. These apps often request permission to access private videos, photos and contact lists from users' mobile phones during the installation process. Perpetrators then exploit this personal information to victimize people. The minister emphasized the importance of public awareness regarding this issue.