Government is cracking down on fraudulent phone calls, banning bulk SIM card connections

The government is cracking down on fraudulent phone calls, banning bulk SIM card connections

In order to tackle fraudulent phone calls, the government has opted to ban the distribution of SIM card connections in bulk and enforce the obligatory verification of SIM card dealers.

Earlier, the government had made police verification of SIM card vendors mandatory while announcing the new measures, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.

"There exists a device called a SIM box that facilitates the automation of numerous calls. Presently, scammers acquire 5 SIMs, exploit them, deactivate them, and then proceed to obtain another set of SIMs to execute deceitful calls. Following an extensive examination, we have concluded that the practice of bulk connections will be terminated, and a system for legitimate business connections will be implemented," articulated Ashwini Vaishnaw, the telecommunications minister.

"Personal KYC verifications are mandatory for these business connections. For instance, if a company acquires 4,000 SIMs, every employee receiving a SIM must undergo KYC," he added.

In some ways or the other, SIM dealers short-circuit the verification process and sell SIMs. Henceforth, irrefutable verification of point-of-sale dealers and their registration will be made mandatory,” he said.

"This is happening to make sure that people who sell SIM cards dishonestly can be held responsible. We talked with the police and the telecom industry before making this decision. Even though it might seem like a small change, you will notice a big difference because of it," he said.

The minister added that the government took action against scams by blocking 66,000 fake WhatsApp accounts, blacklisting 67,000 SIM card sellers, filing 300 police reports against scammers, stopping 8 lakh fraudulent payment wallet accounts, shutting down 52 lakh phone connections acquired through deceitful methods, and preventing the use of 17,000 lost or stolen mobile phones. These steps were taken after the government introduced the Sanchar Sarthi portal in May this year to tackle telecom fraud.