RBI/DNBS/2016-17/53
Master Direction DNBS.PPD.No.04/66.15.001/2016-17
June
08, 2017
Master
Direction - Information Technology Framework for the NBFC Sector
In exercise of the powers
conferred in terms of clause (b) of sub-section (1) of 45-L of the Reserve
Bank of India Act, 1934 (Act 2 of 1934), the Reserve Bank of India being
satisfied for the purpose of enabling it to regulate the credit system of
the country to its advantage it is necessary so to do, hereby issues Master Directions -
Information Technology Framework for the NBFC Sector, 2017 hereinafter
specified.
(Dr. Sathyan David)
Chief General Manager
Enclosure: Information
Technology Framework for NBFC Sector- Directions
INDEX
Sl.
No
|
Contents
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Introduction
|
Section-
A
|
1.
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IT Governance
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2.
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IT Policy
|
3.
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Information and Cyber Security
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4.
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IT Operations
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5.
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IS Audit
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6.
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Business Continuity Planning
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7.
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IT Services Outsourcing
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Section- B
|
8.
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Recommendations for NBFCs with asset size below ? 500 crore
|
Annex- I
|
|
Template for reporting Cyber Incidents
|
Introduction:
The NBFC (Non-Banking Finance
Company) sector has grown in size and complexity over the years. As the
NBFC industry matures and achieves scale, its Information Technology
/Information Security (IT/IS) framework, Business continuity planning
(BCP), Disaster Recovery (DR) Management, IT audit, etc. must be
benchmarked to best practices.
2. Accordingly, directions on IT
Framework for the NBFC sector that are expected to enhance safety,
security, efficiency in processes leading to benefits for NBFCs and their customers
are enclosed. NBFCs may have already implemented or may be implementing
some of the requirements indicated in the circular. NBFCs are therefore
required to conduct a formal gap analysis between their current status and
stipulations as laid out in the circular and put in place a time-bound
action plan to address the gap and comply with the guidelines. Such an
analysis may be submitted to the Board of the company within six months of
the issuance of these directions.
3. The focus of the proposed IT
framework is on IT
Governance, IT Policy, Information & Cyber Security, IT Operations, IS
Audit, Business Continuity Planning and IT Services Outsourcing. The directions are categorized into two parts,
those which are applicable to all NBFCs with asset size above ? 500 crore
(Considered Systemically Important) are provided in Section-A. Directions for NBFCs
with asset size below ? 500 crore are provided in Section-B.
4. NBFCs may place these
directions before their Board, together with a gap-analysis vis-a-vis the
Master Direction and the proposed action by September 30, 2017.
5. NBFCs- Systemically Important
shall comply with the Master Directions by June 30, 2018 and other NBFCs
(asset size below ? 500 crore) shall comply by September 30, 2018.
Section-A
IT
GOVERNANCE
1. IT Governance
IT Governance is an integral
part of corporate governance. It involves leadership support,
organizational structure and processes to ensure that the NBFC’s IT
sustains and extends business strategies and objectives. Effective IT
Governance is the responsibility of the Board of Directors and Executive
Management.
Well-defined roles and
responsibilities of Board and Senior Management are critical, while
implementing IT Governance. Clearly-defined roles enable effective project
control. People, when they are aware of others' expectations from them, are
able to complete work on time, within budget and to the expected level of
quality. IT Governance Stakeholders include: Board of Directors, IT
Strategy Committees, CEOs, Business Executives, Chief Information Officers
(CIOs), Chief Technology Officers (CTOs), IT Steering Committees (operating
at an executive level and focusing on priority setting, resource allocation
and project tracking), Chief Risk Officer and Risk Committees.
The basic principles of value
delivery, IT Risk Management, IT resource management and performance
management must form the basis of governance framework. IT Governance has a
continuous life-cycle. It's a process in which IT strategy drives the
processes, using resources necessary to execute responsibilities. Given the
criticality of the IT, NBFCs may follow relevant aspects of such prudential
governance standards that have found acceptability in the finance industry.
1.1 IT Strategy Committee: NBFCs are required to form an IT Strategy Committee.
The chairman of the committee shall be an independent director and CIO
& CTO should be a part of the committee. The IT Strategy Committee
should meet at an appropriate frequency but not more than six months should
elapse between two meetings. The Committee shall work in partnership with
other Board committees and Senior Management to provide input to them. It
will also carry out review and amend the IT strategies in line with the
corporate strategies, Board Policy reviews, cyber security arrangements and
any other matter related to IT Governance. Its deliberations may be placed
before the Board.
1.2 Roles and Responsibilities
of IT Strategy Committee: Some
of the roles and responsibilities include:
·
Approving
IT strategy and policy documents and ensuring that the management has put
an effective strategic planning process in place;
·
Ascertaining
that management has implemented processes and practices that ensure that
the IT delivers value to the business;
·
Ensuring
IT investments represent a balance of risks and benefits and that budgets
are acceptable;
·
Monitoring
the method that management uses to determine the IT resources needed to
achieve strategic goals and provide high-level direction for sourcing and
use of IT resources;
·
Ensuring
proper balance of IT investments for sustaining NBFC’s growth and becoming
aware about exposure towards IT risks and controls.
IT
POLICY
2. NBFCs may formulate a Board
approved IT policy, in line with the objectives of their organisation comprising
the following:
a.
An IT
organizational structure commensurate with the size, scale and nature of
business activities carried out by the NBFC;
b.
NBFCs
may designate a senior executive as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) or
in-Charge of IT operations whose responsibility is to ensure implementation of IT Policy to the operational
level involving IT strategy, value delivery, risk management and IT
resource management.
c.
To
ensure technical competence at senior/middle level management of NBFC,
periodic assessment of the IT training requirements should be formulated to
ensure that sufficient, competent and capable human resources are
available.
d.
The
NBFCs which are currently not using IPv6 platform should migrate to the
same as per National Telecom Policy issued by the Government of India in
2012. (As per Circular
DNBS(Inf.).CC.No 309/24.01.022/2012-13 November 08, 2012)
INFORMATION
AND CYBER SECURITY
3. Information Security
Information is an asset to all
NBFCs and Information Security (IS) refers to the protection of these
assets in order to achieve organizational goals. The purpose of IS is to
control access to sensitive information, ensuring use only by legitimate
users so that data cannot be read or compromised without proper
authorization. NBFCs must have a board approved IS Policy with the
following basic tenets:
a.
Confidentiality
– Ensuring access to sensitive data to authorized users only.
b.
Integrity
– Ensuring accuracy and reliability of information by ensuring that there
is no modification without authorization.
c.
Availability
– Ensuring that uninterrupted data is available to users when it is needed.
d.
Authenticity
– For IS it is necessary to ensure that the data, transactions,
communications or documents (electronic or physical) are genuine.
3.1 The IS Policy must provide for a IS framework with
the following basic tenets:
a.
Identification
and Classification of Information Assets. NBFCs
shall maintain detailed inventory of Information Asset with distinct and
clear identification of the asset.
b.
Segregation
of functions: There should be
segregation of the duties of the Security Officer/Group (both physical
security as well as cyber security) dealing exclusively with information
systems security and the Information Technology division which actually
implements the computer systems. The information security function should
be adequately resourced in terms of the number of staff, level of skill and
tools or techniques like risk assessment, security architecture,
vulnerability assessment, forensic assessment, etc. Further, there should
be a clear segregation of responsibilities relating to system
administration, database administration and transaction processing.
c.
Role based
Access Control – Access to information
should be based on well-defined user roles (system administrator, user
manager, application owner etc.), NBFCs shall avoid dependence on one or
few persons for a particular job. There should be clear delegation of
authority for right to upgrade/change user profiles and permissions and
also key business parameters (eg. interest rates) which should be
documented.
d.
Personnel
Security - A few authorized
application owners/users may have intimate knowledge of financial
institution processes and they pose potential threat to systems and data.
NBFC should have a process of appropriate check and balance in this regard.
Personnel with privileged access like system administrator, cyber security
personnel, etc should be subject to rigorous background check and
screening.
e.
Physical
Security - The confidentiality,
integrity, and availability of information can be impaired through physical
access and damage or destruction to physical components. NBFCs need to
create a secured environment for physical security of IS Assets such as
secure location of critical data, restricted access to sensitive areas like
data center etc.
f.
Maker-checker is one of the important principles of
authorization in the information systems of financial entities. For each
transaction, there must be at least two individuals necessary for its
completion as this will reduce the risk of error and will ensure
reliability of information.
g.
Incident
Management - The IS Policy should
define what constitutes an incident. NBFCs shall develop and implement
processes for preventing, detecting, analysing and responding to
information security incidents.
h.
Trails- NBFCs shall ensure that audit trails exist for IT
assets satisfying its business requirements including regulatory and legal
requirements, facilitating audit, serving as forensic evidence when
required and assisting in dispute resolution. If an employee, for instance,
attempts to access an unauthorized section, this improper activity should
be recorded in the audit trail.
i.
Public Key
Infrastructure (PKI) - NBFCs
may increase the usage of PKI to ensure confidentiality of data, access
control, data integrity, authentication and nonrepudiation.
3.2 Cyber Security
Need for a Board approved
Cyber-security Policy
NBFCs should put in place a
cyber-security policy elucidating the strategy containing an appropriate
approach to combat cyber threats given the level of complexity of business
and acceptable levels of risk, duly approved by their Board. NBFCs should
review the organisational arrangements so that the security concerns are
appreciated, receive adequate attention and get escalated to appropriate
levels in the hierarchy to enable quick action.
3.3 Vulnerability Management
A vulnerability can be defined
as an inherent configuration flaw in an organization’s information
technology base, whether hardware or software, which can be exploited by a
third party to gather sensitive information regarding the organization.
Vulnerability management is an ongoing process to determine the process of
eliminating or mitigating vulnerabilities based upon the risk and cost
associated with the vulnerabilities. NBFCs may devise a strategy for
managing and eliminating vulnerabilities and such strategy may clearly be
communicated in the Cyber Security policy.
3.4 Cyber security preparedness
indicators
The adequacy of and adherence to
cyber resilience framework should be assessed and measured through
development of indicators to assess the level of risk/preparedness. These
indicators should be used for comprehensive testing through independent
compliance checks and audits carried out by qualified and competent
professionals. The awareness among the stakeholders including employees may
also form a part of this assessment.
3.5 Cyber Crisis Management Plan
A Cyber Crisis Management Plan
(CCMP) should be immediately evolved and should be a part of the overall
Board approved strategy. CCMP should address the following four aspects:
(i) Detection (ii) Response (iii) Recovery and (iv) Containment. NBFCs need
to take effective measures to prevent cyber-attacks and to promptly detect
any cyber-intrusions so as to respond / recover / contain the fall out.
NBFCs are expected to be well prepared to face emerging cyber-threats such
as ‘zero-day’ attacks, remote access threats, and targeted attacks. Among
other things, NBFCs should take necessary preventive and corrective
measures in addressing various types of cyber threats including, but not
limited to, denial of service, distributed denial of services (DDoS),
ransom-ware / crypto ware, destructive malware, business email frauds
including spam, email phishing, spear phishing, whaling, vishing frauds,
drive-by downloads, browser gateway fraud, ghost administrator exploits,
identity frauds, memory update frauds, password related frauds, etc.
3.6 Sharing of information on
cyber-security incidents with RBI
NBFCs are required to report all
types of unusual security incidents as specified in point No. 2 of Annex
I which deals with Basic Information including Cyber Security
Incidents as specified in CSIR Form of Annex I (both the
successful as well as the attempted incidents which did not fructify) to
the DNBS Central Office, Mumbai. The other particulars of the reporting
have been provided in template as per Annex I.
3.7 Cyber-security awareness
among stakeholders / Top Management / Board
It should be realized that
managing cyber risk requires the commitment of the entire organization to
create a cyber-safe environment. This will require a high level of
awareness among staff at all levels. Top Management and Board should also
have a fair degree of awareness of the fine nuances of the threats and
appropriate familiarisation may be organized. NBFCs should proactively
promote, among their customers, vendors, service providers and other
relevant stakeholders an understanding of their cyber resilience
objectives, and require and ensure appropriate action to support their
synchronised implementation and testing.
3.8 Digital Signatures
A Digital Signature Certificate
authenticates entity’s identity electronically. It also provides a high
level of security for online transactions by ensuring absolute privacy of
the information exchanged using a Digital Signature Certificate. NBFCs may
consider use of Digital signatures to protect the authenticity and
integrity of important electronic documents and also for high value fund
transfer.
3.9 IT Risk Assessment
NBFCs should undertake a
comprehensive risk assessment of their IT systems at least on a yearly
basis. The assessment should make an analysis on the threats and
vulnerabilities to the information technology assets of the NBFC and its
existing security controls and processes. The outcome of the exercise
should be to find out the risks present and to determine the appropriate
level of controls necessary for appropriate mitigation of risks. The risk
assessment should be brought to the notice of the Chief Risk Officer (CRO),
CIO and the Board of the NBFC and should serve as an input for Information
Security auditors.
3.10 Mobile Financial Services
NBFCs that are already using or
intending to use Mobile Financial Services should develop a mechanism for
safeguarding information assets that are used by mobile applications to
provide services to customers. The technology used for mobile services
should ensure confidentiality, integrity, authenticity and must provide for
end-to end encryption.
3.11 Social Media Risks
NBFCs using Social Media to
market their products should be well equipped in handling social media
risks and threats. As Social Media is vulnerable to account takeovers and
malware distribution, proper controls, such as encryption and secure
connections, should be prevalent to mitigate such risks.
3.12 Training
Human link is the weakest link
in the information security chain. Hence, there is a vital need for an
initial and ongoing training and information security awareness programme.
The programme may be periodically updated keeping in view changes in
information technology system, threats/vulnerabilities and/or the
information security framework. There needs to be a mechanism to track the
effectiveness of training programmes through an assessment / testing
process. At any point of time, NBFCs need to maintain an updated status on
user training and awareness relating to information security.
IT
OPERATIONS
4 IT Operations should support processing and storage
of information, such that the required information is available in a
timely, reliable, secure and resilient manner. The Board or Senior
Management should take into consideration the risk associated with existing
and planned IT operations and the risk tolerance and then establish and
monitor policies for risk management.
4.1 Acquisition and Development
of Information Systems (New Application Software) and Change Management
It has been the experience while
implementing IT projects that many systems fail because of poor system
design and implementation, as well as inadequate testing. NBFCs should
identify system deficiencies and defects at the system design, development
and testing phases.
NBFCs should establish a
steering committee, consisting of business owners, the development team and
other stakeholders to provide oversight and monitoring of the progress of
the project, including deliverables to be realized at each phase of the
project and milestones to be reached according to the project timetable.
4.2 NBFCs are required to realign their IT systems on
a regular basis in line with the changing needs of its customers and
business. The changes need to be done in such a way that adverse incidents
and disruption to services are minimized while maximizing value for the
customers. For this purpose, NBFCs should develop, with the approval of
their Board, a Change Management Policy that encompasses the following:
a.
prioritizing
and responding to change proposals from business,
b.
cost
benefit analysis of the changes proposed,
c.
assessing
risks associated with the changes proposed,
d.
change
implementation, monitoring and reporting.
It should be the responsibility
of the senior management to ensure that the Change Management policy is
being followed on an ongoing basis.
4.3 IT Enabled Management
Information System
The IT function of an NBFC
should support a robust and comprehensive Management Information System
(MIS) in respect of various business functions as per the needs of the
business. A good MIS should take care of information needs at all levels in
the business including top management.
4.4 NBFCs may put in place MIS that assist the Top
Management as well as the business heads in decision making and also to
maintain an oversight over operations of various business verticals. With
robust IT systems in place, NBFCs may have the following as part of an
effective system generated MIS (indicative list)
a.
A
dashboard for the Top Management summarising financial position vis-à-vis
targets. It may include information on trend on returns on assets across
categories, major growth business segments, movement of net-worth etc.
b.
System
enabled identification and classification of Special Mention Accounts and
NPA as well as generation of MIS reports in this regard.
c.
The
MIS should facilitate pricing of products, especially large ticket loans.
d.
The
MIS should capture regulatory requirements and their compliance.
e.
Financial
Reports including operating and non-operating revenues and expenses, cost
benefit analysis of segments/verticals, cost of funds, etc. (also
regulatory compliance at transaction level)
f.
Reports
relating to treasury operations.
g.
Fraud
analysis- Suspicious transaction analysis, embezzlement, theft or suspected
money-laundering, misappropriation of assets, manipulation of financial
records etc. The regulatory requirement of reporting fraud to RBI should be
system driven.
h.
Capacity
and performance analysis of IT security systems
i.
Incident
reporting, their impact and steps taken for non -recurrence of such events
in the future.
4.5 MIS for Supervisory
requirements - The MIS that help
management in taking strategic decisions shall also assist in generating
the required information/returns for the supervisor. The present structure
of reporting system (to the supervisor) needs to be kept in view while
designing the MIS. All regulatory/supervisory returns should be system
driven; there should be seamless integration between MIS system of the NBFC
and reporting under COSMOS. Further, it is essential that “”Read Only”
access be provided to RBI Inspectors.
IS
AUDIT
5. Policy for Information System
Audit (IS Audit).
The objective of the IS Audit is
to provide an insight on the effectiveness of controls that are in place to
ensure confidentiality, integrity and availability of the organization’s IT
infrastructure. IS Audit shall identify risks and methods to mitigate risk
arising out of IT infrastructure such as server architecture, local and
wide area networks, physical and information security, telecommunications
etc.
5.1 IS Audit should form an integral part of Internal
Audit system of the NBFC. While designing the IS framework, NBFCs shall
refer to guidance issued by Professional bodies like ISACA, IIA, ICAI in
this regard. ICAI has published “Standard on Internal Audit (SIA) 14:
Internal Audit in an Information Technology Environment” on the subject.
NBFCs shall adopt an IS Audit framework duly approved by their Board. Further,
NBFCs shall have adequately skilled personnel in Audit Committee who can
understand the results of the IS Audit.
5.2 Coverage: IS Audit should cover effectiveness of policy and
oversight of IT systems, evaluating adequacy of processes and internal controls,
recommend corrective action to address deficiencies and follow-up. IS Audit
should also evaluate the effectiveness of business continuity planning,
disaster recovery set up and ensure that BCP is effectively implemented in
the organization. During the process of IS Audit, due importance shall be
given to compliance of all the applicable legal and statutory requirements.
5.3 Personnel – IS Audit may be conducted by an internal team of
the NBFC. In case of inadequate internal skills, NBFCs may appoint an
outside agency having enough expertise in area of IT/IS audit for the
purpose. There should be a right mix of skills and understanding of legal
and regulatory requirements so as to assess the efficacy of the framework
vis-à-vis these standards. IS Auditors should act independently of NBFCs’
Management both in attitude and appearance. In case of engagement of
external professional service providers, independence and accountability
issues may be properly addressed.
5.4 Periodicity - The periodicity of IS audit should ideally be
based on the size and operations of the NBFC but may be conducted at least
once in a year. IS Audit should be undertaken preferably prior to the
statutory audit so that IS audit reports are available to the statutory
auditors well in time for examination and for incorporating comments, if
any, in the audit reports.
5.5 Reporting – The framework should clearly prescribe the
reporting framework, whether to the Board or a Committee of the Board viz.
Audit Committee of the Board (ACB)
5.6 Compliance – NBFCs’ management is responsible for deciding the
appropriate action to be taken in response to reported observations and
recommendations during IS Audit. Responsibilities for compliance/sustenance
of compliance, reporting lines, timelines for submission of compliance,
authority for accepting compliance should be clearly delineated in the
framework. The framework may provide for an audit-mode access for auditors/
inspecting/ regulatory authorities.
5.7 Computer-Assisted Audit
Techniques (CAATs): NBFCs
shall adopt a proper mix of manual techniques and CAATs for conducting IS
Audit. CAATs may be used in critical areas (such as detection of revenue
leakage, treasury functions, assessing impact of control weaknesses,
monitoring customer transactions under AML requirements and generally in
areas where a large volume of transactions are reported) particularly for
critical functions or processes having financial/regulatory/legal
implications.
Business
Continuity Planning
6. Business Continuity Planning
(BCP) and Disaster Recovery
BCP forms a significant part of
an organisation's overall Business Continuity Management plan, which
includes policies, standards and procedures to ensure continuity,
resumption and recovery of critical business processes. BCP shall be
designed to minimise the operational, financial, legal, reputational and
other material consequences arising from a disaster. NBFC should adopt a
Board approved BCP Policy. The functioning of BCP shall be monitored by the
Board by way of periodic reports. The CIO shall be responsible for
formulation, review and monitoring of BCP to ensure continued
effectiveness. The BCP may have the following salient features:
6.1 Business Impact Analysis- NBFCs shall first identify critical business
verticals, locations and shared resources to come up with the detailed
Business Impact Analysis. The process will envisage the impact of any
unforeseen natural or man-made disasters on the NBFC’s business. The entity
shall clearly list the business impact areas in order of priority.
6.2 Recovery strategy/
Contingency Plan- NBFCs shall try to fully
understand the vulnerabilities associated with interrelationships between
various systems, departments and business processes. The BCP should come up
with the probabilities of various failure scenarios. Evaluation of various
options should be done for recovery and the most cost-effective, practical
strategy should be selected to minimize losses in case of a disaster.
6.3 NBFCs shall consider the need to put in place
necessary backup sites for their critical business systems and Data
centers.
6.4 NBFCs shall test the BCP either annually or when
significant IT or business changes take place to determine if the entity
could be recovered to an acceptable level of business within the timeframe
stated in the contingency plan. The test should be based on ‘worst case
scenarios’. The results along with the gap analysis may be placed before
the CIO and the Board. The GAP Analysis along with Board’s insight should
form the basis for construction of the updated BCP.
IT
SERVICES OUTSOURCING
7. Policy for IT Services
Outsourcing
Outsourcing of IT related
business process can provide an NBFC the opportunity to realise valuable
strategic and economic benefits. However, prior to commencement of any
outsourcing arrangement, careful consideration of risks, threats of
contractual arrangements and regulatory compliance obligations must take
place. Companies usually outsource their IT related business process to a
third party vendor because of higher efficiency, inadequate resources and
lack of specialized knowledge. The NBFC’s decision to outsource IT Services
should fit into the institution’s overall strategic plan and corporate
objectives.
7.1 The terms and conditions
governing the contract between the NBFC and the Outsourcing service
provider should be carefully defined in written agreements and vetted by
NBFC’s legal counsel on their legal effect and enforceability. The
contractual agreement may have the following provisions.
a) Monitoring and Oversight: Provide for continuous monitoring and assessment
by the NBFC of the service provider so that any necessary corrective
measure can be taken immediately. Outsourcing service provider should have
adequate systems and procedures in place to ensure protection of
data/application outsourced.
b) Access to books and records /
Audit and Inspection: This
would include:
i.
Ensure
that the NBFC has the ability to access all books, records and information
relevant to the outsourced activity available with the service provider.
For technology outsourcing, requisite audit trails and logs for
administrative activities should be retained and accessible to the NBFC
based on approved requests.
ii.
Provide
the NBFC with the right to conduct audits on the service provider whether
by its internal or external auditors, or by external specialists appointed
to act on its behalf and to obtain copies of any audit or review reports
and findings made on the service provider in conjunction with the services
performed for the NBFC.
iii.
The
contractual agreement may include clauses to allow the Reserve Bank of India or persons authorized by it to
access the NBFC’s documents,
records of transactions, and other necessary information given to, stored
or processed by the service provider within a reasonable time. This
includes information maintained in paper and electronic formats.
7.2 The Board and senior management are ultimately
responsible for ‘outsourcing operations’ and for managing risks inherent in
such outsourcing relationships. The Board of Directors of NBFCs is
responsible for effective due diligence, oversight and management of
outsourcing and accountability for all outsourcing decisions. The Board and
IT Strategy committee have the responsibility to institute an effective
governance mechanism and risk management process for all IT outsourced
operations.
7.3 The Role of IT Strategy committee in respect of
outsourced operations shall include
a.
Instituting
an appropriate governance mechanism for outsourced processes, comprising of
risk based policies and procedures, to effectively identify, measure,
monitor and control risks associated with outsourcing in an end to end
manner;
b.
Defining
approval authorities for outsourcing depending on nature of risks and
materiality of outsourcing;
c.
Developing
sound and responsive outsourcing risk management policies and procedures
commensurate with the nature, scope, and complexity of outsourcing
arrangements;
d.
Undertaking
a periodic review of outsourcing strategies and all existing material
outsourcing arrangements;
e.
Evaluating
the risks and materiality of all prospective outsourcing based on the
framework developed by the Board;
f.
Periodically
reviewing the effectiveness of policies and procedures;
g.
Communicating
significant risks in outsourcing to the NBFC’s Board on a periodic basis;
h.
Ensuring
an independent review and audit in accordance with approved policies and
procedures;
i.
Ensuring
that contingency plans have been developed and tested adequately;
j.
NBFC
should ensure that their business continuity preparedness is not adversely
compromised on account of outsourcing. NBFCs are expected to adopt sound
business continuity management practices as issued by RBI and seek
proactive assurance that the outsourced service provider maintains
readiness and preparedness for business continuity on an ongoing basis.
Section-B
Recommendations for NBFCs with
asset size below ? 500 crore
8. It is recommended that
smaller NBFCs may start with developing basic IT systems mainly for
maintaining the database. NBFCs having asset size below ? 500 crore shall
have a Board approved Information Technology policy/Information system
policy. This policy may be designed considering the undermentioned basic
standards and the same shall be put in place by September 30, 2018. The IT
systems shall have:
I.
Basic
security aspects such as physical/ logical access controls and well defined
password policy;
II.
A well-defined
user role;
III.
A
Maker-checker concept to reduce the risk of error and misuse and to ensure
reliability of data/information;
IV.
Information
Security and Cyber Security;
V.
Requirements
as regards Mobile Financial Services, Social Media and Digital Signature
Certificates as indicated in para 3.18, 3.10 & 3.11 above;
VI.
System
generated reports for Top Management summarising financial position
including operating and non-operating revenues and expenses, cost benefit
analysis of segments/verticals, cost of funds, etc.;
VII.
Adequacy
to file regulatory returns to RBI (COSMOS Returns);
VIII.
A BCP
policy duly approved by the Board ensuring regular oversight of the Board
by way of periodic reports (at least once every year);
IX.
Arrangement
for backup of data with periodic testing.
8.1 IT Systems should be progressively scaled up as
the size and complexity of NBFC’s operations increases.
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