New Delhi, May 28 -- VFS Global, the world's largest visa processing outsourcing company, is being accused of malpractices including aggressive upselling of premium services, severe data privacy vulnerabilities, and the systemic exploitation of visa applicants. A year-long investigation by the investigative journalism organization Lighthouse Reports has found that the Dubai-based company built an adjacent business around selling add-ons such as SMS updates, courier return services, and access to premium lounges.

VFS, which was founded in 2001 by Zubin Karkaria, is now a multi-billion-dollar company that holds visa outsourcing contracts with 71 governments worldwide. The company is accused of exploiting its near-monopoly in EU visa proces...