Google is ramping up security measures and research to combat online scams in India with an initiative called DigiKavach, the company announced on Thursday as part of a host of new collaborations and commitments. The announcement on the security measures comes at a time of growing unease over a spurt in cyber crime, especially those involving financial frauds, such as instances of bank accounts being compromised and people being extorted by predatory loan apps. Among the measures is a ramped-up threat intelligence framework, which includes collaboration with fintech companies for on-ground feedback and “deep research” into how scammers are evolving, which the company plans to share more widely to detail new scam patterns. Cyber scams in India have played out using methods that are both conventional and novel. A more worrying vector has been the use of micro-loan phone applications, often floated by fly-by-night companies.