The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), which announced a new message traceability system to combat online fraud and cybercrime, will now go into effect on December 11. For those unfamiliar, the new initiative aims to track the journey of commercial telemarketing messages from sender to final recipient, ensuring that the origins of each message can be traced.
Originally, the new system was planned to be enforced by November 1, 2024 which was later extended to November 30, following the requests by the telecom operators including Jio, Airtel and Vi. Now, the new compliance date for the new guidelines is set for December 11.
Beginning December 11, TRAI will reject any message traffic in which the chain of telemarketers is either undefined or mismatched with a pre-defined chain. This means that starting that date, any message whose origin cannot be traced back to the correct telemarketing chain will not be delivered.
The new traceability system will have a huge impact on mobile users. One of the primary benefits is that OTP (One-Time Password) messages, which are frequently used in cyber fraud schemes, can now be easily tracked. This means that telecom companies will be able to determine the origin of any OTP message, providing a valuable tool in the fight against cybercrime.
Read: TRAI refutes claims of OTP delays starting December 1: What you need to know
Along with these, the new rules are also expected to curb the number of spam calls and fake messages that usually plague the mobile users. With this, TRAI aims to trace all the messages, specifically those who are sent through the telecom company routes, making it more authentic.