The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has amended the Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations (TCCCPR), 2018, introducing stricter measures to curb Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC) and strengthen consumer protection. “The revised regulations aim to deal with evolving methods of misuse of telecom resources and promote a more transparent commercial communication ecosystem for consumers,” the Ministry of Communications said on Wednesday.
Consumers can now report spam calls and messages from unregistered senders without pre-registering their preferences. The complaint process has been streamlined, requiring only basic details like the sender’s number, date, and brief content of the spam communication. The complaint window has been extended from three to seven days, and telecom operators must take action within five days, significantly reducing the previous 30-day timeline.
To enable swift regulatory action, TRAI has revised the threshold for action against spammers. Instead of requiring 10 complaints in seven days, action will now be triggered if a sender receives five complaints in ten days. Telecom providers must also integrate easy spam reporting features within their mobile apps, allowing users to auto-log spam details or file complaints using screenshots.
Empowering Consumers with Better Control
To enhance user control over promotional messages, TRAI has mandated that all promotional messages must carry an opt-out option, making preference modification easier. Messages will now have standardized headers for quick identification: “-P” for Promotional messages, “-S” for Service-related messages, “-T” for Transactional messages and “-G” for Government communications.
A new 90-day cooling period has been introduced, preventing businesses from seeking consent from users who have opted out. Additionally, consent for ongoing transactions will now be valid for only seven days, ensuring businesses do not misuse prior approvals to send indefinite messages or calls. Service-related calls post-contract expiry will also require explicit consumer consent.
TRAI has also introduced regulations for auto-dialers and robocalls, requiring clear disclosure and strict control to prevent consumer disturbance.
Stronger Penalties for Spammers
TRAI has introduced harsher penalties for repeated violators. Upon the first violation, all outgoing services of the spammer will be suspended for 15 days. For subsequent violations, all telecom resources—including PRI and SIP trunks—will be disconnected for one year, and the sender will be blacklisted across all operators.
To curb fraud, any deceptive calls or messages aimed at misleading consumers will now be classified as UCC, allowing swift regulatory action. TRAI has also banned the use of 10-digit numbers for telemarketing, ensuring commercial communications originate only from designated number series: 140 for Promotional calls and 1600 for Transactional and Service calls
Ensuring Compliance and Industry Accountability
To enforce compliance, TRAI has introduced graded financial penalties for telecom operators failing to implement these regulations. Fines will range from Rs 2 lakh for the first violation to Rs 10 lakh per subsequent violation. Additionally, access providers can now demand security deposits from telemarketers, which may be forfeited upon regulatory violations.
All registered senders and telemarketers must enter into legally binding agreements with access providers, clearly outlining compliance responsibilities.
Advanced Anti-Spam Measures and Ecosystem Strengthening
To identify spammers proactively, telecom operators must analyze call and SMS patterns, flagging accounts with unusually high call volumes, short durations, or skewed call ratios. TRAI has also mandated the deployment of honeypots—dedicated trap numbers to track spam trends and take pre-emptive action.
For better traceability, the number of intermediaries between Principal Entities (PE) and Telemarketers (TM) will be limited. Senders and telemarketers must also undergo physical verification, biometric authentication, and mobile number linking before registration.
Access providers have been directed to ensure strict compliance and take proactive measures to block violators.
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