India’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has introduced a two-tiered system to detect and block incoming international spoofed calls. The initiative comes amid rising concerns over fraudulent international calls plaguing Indian mobile users.
Under the first phase of the system, telecom service providers (TSPs) are tasked with presenting spoofed international calls originating from numbers within their networks. This process has already been implemented across all four major TSPs, with encouraging results.
According to the Ministry of Communications, approximately one-third of the 4.5 million daily spoofed calls have been successfully blocked, keeping them from entering the Indian telecom network.
“About one-third of the total spoofed calls at 4.5 million spoofed calls are being stopped from entering the Indian telecom network,” said the Ministry of Communications.
The second phase, which involves a centralised system to tackle spoofed calls originating from subscribers of other telecom operators, is expected to be launched soon.
Despite this progress, the Ministry warns that fraudsters may still find ways to bypass the safeguards.
“Fraudsters, however, continue to adapt and devise new methods to deceive the public,” the Ministry continues.
The Ministry also highlighted the steps taken by the government to prevent these frauds. These include setting up of Digital Intelligence Unit (DIU) to combat cybercrime and financial fraud and launching the Sanchar Saathi portal, a service that allows citizens to block and track lost or stolen mobile phones across India.
The DoT has also developed a Digital Intelligence Platform, which facilitates information sharing between various stakeholders, such as local authorities, central agencies, banks, and telecom operators, to prevent online scams.
The Ministry of Communications has blocked more than 71,000 Point of Sale (PoS) involved in fraudulent SIM card sales, 11 lakh WhatsApp accounts linked to fake or forged documents and 77.61 lakh mobile connections exceeding the prescribed limits for an individual.
In August 2024, TRAI directed telecom operators to inspect text messages for web addresses, links to over-the-top messaging services, app installation files, or phone numbers and to block any SMS containing these elements.
TRAI also introduced tougher rules targeting unauthorised calls and marketing companies to combat the growing problem of unwanted calls.
Additionally, as The Indian Express reports, TRAI is considering introducing a mandatory caller ID system called Calling Name Presentation (CNAP) to provide users with more transparency about incoming calls.
The regulatory body is also exploring differential tariffs for subscribers who make over 50 calls or send more than 50 SMSes a day.
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