Govt’s Efforts to Curb International Spoofed Calls Prove Successful
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 25th Jan. The government’s indigenously-developed system to identify and block international spoofed calls, which previously displayed Indian mobile numbers, has made a significant impact, reducing such calls to about 4 lakh per day. The system, launched in collaboration with all telecom service providers (TSPs), has successfully blocked 90% of incoming spoofed international calls, totaling around 1.35 crore in just 24 hours.
Spoofed calls, which appeared to originate from Indian mobile numbers, were being used by fraudsters to carry out cybercrimes and financial frauds. These calls were manipulated through Calling Line Identity (CLI) spoofing, giving the false impression that the calls were from within India, while they were actually made from abroad.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has also urged Indian telecom providers to take action against foreign carriers or aggregators involved in handing over these spoofed calls. As a result, more than 20 such carriers have been blocked so far.
In response to the evolving nature of the issue, where scammers are now spoofing international numbers, the DoT has instructed telecom providers to label all international incoming calls, clearly marking them as “International Calls.” This will help Indian citizens distinguish between legitimate calls from organizations like the DoT, TRAI, RBI, and others, and potential fraudulent calls.
One major telecom service provider has already implemented this feature, with others in the process of doing so. To further curb the issue, the DoT has emphasized blocking traffic from international carriers sending spoofed CLI calls to India.
Additionally, the newly launched Sanchar Saathi App has simplified the process for citizens to report fraudulent calls directly from their mobile phone call logs. The app enhances citizens’ ability to quickly and easily report suspected fraud, contributing to the ongoing efforts to combat cybercrimes associated with spoofed calls.
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