Regulators unite to combat spam Calls: joint panel sets urgent measures

In a decisive move to tackle the growing menace of spam calls, a joint panel of sectoral regulators convened on Tuesday to strategize urgent actions against entities making unsolicited promotional, robocalls, and pre-recorded messages. The meeting was led by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) and included participation from key regulators such as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA). Representatives from the Ministry of Consumer Affairs (MoCA), Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), the Department of Telecom (DoT), and the Home Ministry also attended.

The joint committee of regulators (JCOR) focused on the misuse of cloud-based telephony and fixed-line private exchanges by business entities making commercial voice calls in violation of Trai's regulations. The panel emphasized the need for these entities to migrate to the designated 140 series for making promotional calls, as mandated by Trai.

"There is an urgent need to take firm action against spammers who are using PRI/SIP/bulk connections for making promotional voice calls, robocalls, and pre-recorded calls," Trai stated in an official release.

Trai has instructed all telecom operators to ensure that telemarketing calls beginning with the 140 series are migrated to an online blockchain-based platform by September 30, enhancing monitoring and control. Additionally, from September 1, operators must block messages containing unapproved web links, online links, or callback numbers.

The regulators also discussed the misuse of SMS headers and templates, which often involve the transmission of malicious links using variable message parts, making it challenging to identify the sender. To counter this, Trai has mandated that all messages transmitted from senders must be traceable by November 1.

The meeting also reviewed a pilot study, commissioned by Trai and RBI, to assess the technical feasibility of various solutions for curbing spam calls. The study's findings were deliberated upon, with a focus on the exchange of information among regulators to effectively combat fraud.

The regulators agreed on enforcing the mandatory whitelisting of URLs, APKs, and callback numbers, adhering to the timelines set by Trai. The discussion also touched upon the use of the 160 series for service and transactional calls, further tightening the regulations around telemarketing practices.

The joint efforts of these regulatory bodies signal a strong commitment to protecting consumers from the increasing threat of spam and fraudulent communications.