India's telecom regulator has proposed a wide set of changes to strengthen its anti-spam framework, placing greater responsibilities on not just telecom operators but also apps and phone makers.
Call-management apps such as Truecaller, as well as smartphones with built-in spam protection, will now need to share spam reports with telecom operators, helping them take quicker action against spammers. Mint explains what it means for the companies and consumers.
What changes has Trai proposed and how does it help consumers?
On Friday, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) proposed several changes to strengthen its anti-spam framework. The regulator aims to curb spam calls and messages more effectively by tightening enforcement, improving complaint mechanisms and expanding the use of technology to detect spam.
The proposals, when implemented, will improve how consumers can report unwanted calls or messages and fix problems that arose under the old rules.
Telecos will need to review message templates more thoroughly, monitor bulk SMS systems more closely, ensure complaints and reports are accurately documented, and share information across telecom networks to better control spam.
How will the rules impact apps like Truecaller and phone makers?
Trai proposes new obligations for call-management apps, including phone diallers and third-party spam-filtering apps such as Truecaller. Even smartphone makers such as Google, Samsung and others, who use in-built features to allow users to block and report spam, will have to comply with additional responsibilities under the new regulations.
The regulator said spam reports submitted by users through these apps or directly to phone makers should be routed to telecom operators’ distributed ledger technology (DLT) platforms so they can be treated as formal complaints and action could be taken against spam senders.
In 2025, Truecaller identified over 4,168 crore spam calls and 12,903 crore spam messages in India. The community blocked 1,189 crore spam calls for Indians in 2025, according to data shared by the company. The regulator wants these to be reported to telecos as well for effective action on spammers.
The DLT platforms maintained by telecos track commercial messages and calls, including the sender, and complaint records, allowing operators to identify and block spammers.
The regulator said such apps should not tag, block or filter calls originating from designated number series, such as the 140 and 1600 series, which are reserved for registered telemarketers, service calls and official communications.
Apps that fail to comply could face regulatory warnings, be declared non-compliant or potentially lose intermediary liability protections available under the Information Technology Act 2000.
How will telcos’ responsibilities change?
The proposed amendments place greater operational responsibility on telecom operators to detect, investigate and act against spam communications. Telecos will be required to use AI-based systems to identify suspected spam activity and verify the identity and usage of telecom resources by senders flagged by such systems.
If repeated suspicious activity is detected, operators may need to conduct physical verification and take regulatory action, including suspending or disconnecting telecom resources used for spam.
Trai has proposed additional charges and penalties on operators that allow bulk spam calls and messages, as the menace has exploded with the rise of automation. A maximum of 5 paise per minute termination charge will have to be paid by the operator from whose network robocalls originate—from numbers other than 1400 or 1600 series—to the carrier which receives such communication.
Operators will also be expected to carry out additional validation of message templates before accepting commercial communication traffic from senders. They have to designate a senior management employee as appellate authority to resolve consumer complaints.
What are the new timelines for taking action?
The new regulations would give operators two business days, up from one, to examine call detail records to verify a spam complaint. The time limit for operators to check for other complaints against the same sender has also been extended from two business hours to one business day.
To ensure rapid response to automated threats, networks must share intelligence about AI-flagged spam numbers with each other within two hours. If an investigation is initiated, the sender will be given five business days to represent their case before their telecom resources are suspended or disconnected.
To protect consumer rights, the rules introduce a 15-day window for users to appeal an unsatisfactorily resolved complaint, which the operator's designated appellate authority must review and resolve within 15 days.
What rules will apply to telemarketers and businesses?
Businesses and telemarketers must follow stricter compliance requirements. They must pre-declare if they use automated application-to-person. Failing to do so can lead telecom operators to take action against them.
Businesses have to verify their registered details, headers, and templates every year to avoid automatic suspension. If misused, they must act quickly—reset credentials within 24 hours and report to law enforcement within two days.
The regulator has closed the old “inquiry loophole,” which let companies send promotional messages claiming they were responding to a customer inquiry. Now, messages can only be sent with explicit consent.
Telemarketers will face strict penalties: first-time offenders lose access to their numbers for 15 days, while repeat offenders will face disconnection for a year, be blacklisted, and even have devices blocked. Anyone restoring blocked numbers must pay at least half of the total restoration cost.