The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) on Friday said that the Central system to stop spoofed calls will be commissioned shortly, and as of now all four telecom service providers (TSPs) – Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, Vodafone-Idea and Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) -- have successfully implemented the new system to block pesky calls and SMSes. The DoT also urged citizens to report such calls at Chakshu facility.

It informed that about one-third of total spoofed calls of 4.5 million spoofed calls are being stopped from entering the Indian telecom network. The DoT also informed that it has disconnected 1.77 crore mobile connections taken on by fake/ forged documents; targeted action of disconnection of 33.48 lakh mobile connections and blocking of 49,930 mobile handsets used by cyber criminals in cyber-crime hotspots/districts of the country.

Also, 77.61 lakh mobile connections exceeding the prescribed limits for an individual have been disconnected and blocked of 2.29 lakh mobile phones involved in cyber-crime or fraudulent activities pan India. About 12.02 lakh out of 21.03 lakh reported stolen/ lost mobile phones have been also traced.

The DoT, in collaboration with TSPs, has introduced an advanced system designed to identify and block incoming international spoofed calls before they can reach Indian telecom subscribers.

This system is being deployed in two phases -- at the TSP level, to prevent calls spoofed with phone numbers of their own subscribers; and at a central level, to stop calls spoofed with the numbers of subscribers from other TSPs.

Public protection

“The next phase, involving a centralised system that will eliminate the remaining spoofed calls across all TSPs, is expected to be commissioned shortly,” it said adding that the Chakshu facility is a significant step towards safeguarding citizens from cyber fraud.

“By providing a streamlined process for reporting suspicious activities, it helps in the early detection and prevention of potential frauds, thereby protecting users from financial and personal losses,” it said.

However, fraudsters also continue to adapt and devise new methods to deceive the public, it added.

“DoT is taking timely measures to protect telecom users as these new ways are reported. In the age of rapidly evolving technology, the DoT has taken multiple measures to make the telecom ecosystems safer and secure. However, even with these robust safeguards, there may still be instances where fraudsters succeed through other means,” it said.

Foreign fraudulence

In recent times, citizens are receiving many fraudulent calls, often disguised as originating from Indian mobile numbers. These calls are in fact manipulated by cyber-criminals operating from abroad, the DoT noted adding that recent cases have included false accusations involving drugs, narcotics, and sex rackets, further intensifying public concern.

These criminals exploit the Calling Line Identity (CLI) to mask the actual origin of the calls, which has led to a spate of incidents involving threats of mobile number disconnection, fake digital arrests, and even impersonation of government officials or law enforcement agencies, it added.

Meanwhile, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) also said that it has issued strict instructions to service providers to act swiftly against spammers. As a result service providers black-listed more than 680 entities and disconnected 18 lakh numbers during last one and a half month.

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