The Department of Telecommunications (DoT), in partnership with Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) has blocked 4.5 million spoofed calls as part of a new initiative to identify and block incoming international spoofed calls before they can reach Indian telecom subscribers. Fraudsters have been exploiting the Calling Line Identity (CLI) system to disguise foreign-origin calls as Indian numbers, leading to a rise in fake threats involving mobile disconnections, false accusations, and impersonation of government officials, Ministry of Communications said on Friday.
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Centralised System to Strengthen Defence
In response, the DoT has rolled out a two-phase system to prevent such calls. The first phase, now active across all TSPs (Airtel, BSNL Vodafone Idea, Jio), blocks calls spoofed with numbers from within their networks.
"As of now, all four TSPs have successfully implemented the system. About one third of total spoofed calls at 4.5 million spoofed calls are being stopped from entering the Indian telecom network. The next phase, involving a centralised system that will eliminate the remaining spoofed calls across all TSPs, is expected to be commissioned shortly," the Ministry said.
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The official release said, fraudsters have adapted new tactics, leading the DoT to urge citizens to report suspicious communications through the Chakshu facility on the Sanchar Saathi platform. The initiative allows users to report suspected fraud via calls, SMS, and WhatsApp, aiding in early detection and prevention.
Digital Intelligence Units to Secure Networks
Alongside this, the DoT has launched the Digital Intelligence Unit (DIU) and Digital Intelligence Platform (DIP) to further safeguard telecom resources. These measures have resulted in the disconnection of 1.77 crore mobile connections taken on fake documents, the blocking of 2.29 lakh phones linked to cybercrime, and the disengagement of 11 lakh fraudulent WhatsApp accounts.
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Crackdown on Fraudulent SIM Agents
The crackdown also includes action against fraudulent SIM agents, with 71,000 agents blacklisted and 365 FIRs registered. Despite these efforts, the DoT continues to enhance measures to stay ahead of evolving fraud techniques, the Ministry said.
