Government Mulls Unruly Customers List to Curb Scams, Spam Calls
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2024-08-12 13:54 GMT
New Delhi: In an attempt to curb scams and spam calls, the government is mulling creating an “unruly customers list” in which the customers may be banned for 1-6 months for taking new SIM cards for their use in mobile phones. It has also designed new measures to make the telecom experience safer, with the rules coming into effect from September 1. Though the detailed guidelines are yet to come, to begin with such measures the government is expected to soon consult with all the stakeholders in this regard, a top source said on Monday.
As per the source, telecom watchdog Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), has designed new measures to make the telecom experience safer, with the rules coming into effect from September 1. "The action of the regulator is aimed to curb the growing menace of such calls and messages. From next month onwards, Trai has mandated that any entity found misusing its telecom resources for making spam calls would face severe consequences,” the source said.
Elaborating the measures, the source further said that some actions include the immediate disconnection of all telecom resources by the service provider and a two-year blacklisting from all telecom operators. “This measure is expected to create a substantial deterrent against spammers who misuse SIP/PRI lines for unsolicited communications. These new regulations are aimed at ensuring better compliance by telemarketers and safeguarding consumers from unsolicited commercial communications (UCC),” it said.
“Additionally, no messages containing URLs or Android Application Packages (APKs) that are not whitelisted will be permitted for delivery. This move is aimed at blocking potentially harmful links often used by spammers to lure unsuspecting consumers into scams or downloading malicious software. This step will make it easier to track the origin of spam messages, further strengthening the regulatory framework,” it added.
Telecom operators have been given a deadline of October 31, 2024, to complete the technical implementation of entity and telemarketer chain binding to ensure the traceability of message flows. During a recent parliamentary session, while responding to queries about spam calls, Dr Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, minister of state for communications, highlighted the existing measures under the Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2018 (TCCCPR-2018).