TRAI To Finalise Updated Regulations On Curbing Spam Calls

SUMMARY

Resulting from extensive discussions on recent consultation paper, TRAI is now expected to finalise the regulations over the next 3 months

The regulatory body now proposed that telecom subscribers making more than 50 calls or sending about 50 SMS messages per day should be scrutinised as potential pesky calls in the consultation paper

Last month, TRAI also directed telecom operators to disconnect more than 2.75 Lakh mobile numbers, telecom resources and SIP DID (session initiation protocol and direct inward dialling) in response to its directives

Month after the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) directed telecom operators to blacklist 50 entities for spamming end users, the regulator will likely finalise tighter and updated regulations on curbing spam calls and messages by January.

As per PTI, citing TRAI chairman Anil Kumar Lahoti, after holding extensive discussions on recent consultation paper, the regulator is now expected to finalise the regulations over the next 3 months.

“Our consultation paper was floated in August-end…we have already received comments and counter comments on it and now we will be analysing all the views and hold an open house discussion. It will take about three months for regulations to be finalised… so around January, we will come out with updated regulations on curbing spam,” Lahoti was quoted as saying in the report.

The regulatory body now proposed that telecom subscribers making more than 50 calls or sending about 50 SMS messages per day should be scrutinised as potential pesky calls in the consultation paper.

The telecom regulator, having received more than 7.9 Lakh complaints against unregistered telemarketers in the first half of 2024, issued directions to telcos to immediately stop promotional voice calls from unregistered senders or telemarketers.

Meanwhile, TRAI along with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) jointly disconnected over 1 Cr mobile connections to check pesky callers and fraudsters, a month ago.

It is pertinent to note that, the regulatory body informed then, from April 1, 2025, monthly monitoring of Quality of Service, performance of mobile service will be started instead of quarterly basis.

However, on the back of TRAI’s measures to cut down on unsolicited and pesky calls, telecom giant Bharti Airtel launched artificial intelligence (AI)-powered spam detection tool, a few weeks ago, to flag users of suspected spam calls and messages, which will be free and auto-activated for all Airtel users.