Trai penalizes Jio, Airtel, BSNL in Paytm vs telcos phishing case
By MYBRANDBOOK
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has imposed a penalty on Bharti Airtel Ltd, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd, among others, as they did not respond appropriately to a show-cause notice issued due to failure in block phishing activities on their networks.
The authority has also fined Vodafone Idea Ltd, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) and Tata Teleservices in a case pertaining to One97 Communications Ltd, the parent of fintech company Paytm. In June, One97 had moved the Delhi High Court against telcos, Trai and the Centre for not blocking those who were defrauding its customers by phishing activities over mobile networks.
BSNL has been slapped with the highest fine of ₹30 crore, according to an affidavit filed by the Trai at the Delhi High Court. Mint has reviewed a copy of the affidavit. Almost 60-70% of the fraudulent messages and phishing attempts to customers have been on the BSNL network, according to industry officials.
Trai said in the affidavit filed, “As per regulation 27 of Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations (TCCCPR), 2018, the Authority (Trai) may impose financial disincentives on any access provider if it fails to curb Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC) through its network.”
However, Trai cannot impose penalty on telecom operators without giving them sufficient time to block phishing activities on their networks. While BSNL was issued a show-cause notice twice to comply with the UCC guidelines, other telcos were asked on 1 October. Failure to curb UCC by both BSNL and other telcos attracted the penalty.
The intervention appeal, which was placed before the Delhi High Court in the last hearing on 23 September, said fintechs such as PhonePe and MobiKwik were also hurt by phishing activities taking place over various mobile networks.
In its first petition in June, Paytm filed a defamation suit of ₹100 crore on telecom operators--Airtel, Reliance Jio, BSNL, MTNL, and Vodafone Idea--for not blocking phishing activities over their networks, leading to financial loss for the fintech company.
Nazara and ONDC set to transform in-game monetization with ‘
Nazara Technologies has teamed up with the Open Network for Digital Comme...
Jio Platforms and NICSI to offer cloud services to government
In a collaborative initiative, the National Informatics Centre Services In...
BSNL awards ₹5,000 Cr Project to RVNL-Led Consortium
A syndicate led by Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (abbreviated as RVNL), along wi...
Pinterest tracks users without consent, alleges complaint
A recent complaint alleges that Pinterest, the popular image-sharing platf...
DRUVA SOFTWARE PVT. LTD.
PDRL - Passenger Drone Research Pvt. Ltd.
LENOVO INDIA PVT. LTD.
STERLITE TECHNOLOGIES LTD.
Icons Of India : Dr. Arvind Gupta
Arvind Gupta is the Head and Co-Founder of the Digital India Foundatio...
Icons Of India : MUKESH D. AMBANI
Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani is an Indian businessman and the chairman and ...
ICONS OF INDIA : RITESH AGARWAL
Ritesh Agarwal is an Indian billionaire entrepreneur and the founder a...
CSC - Common Service Centres
CSC initiative in India is a strategic cornerstone of the Digital Indi...
UIDAI - Unique Identification Authority of India
UIDAI and the Aadhaar system represent a significant milestone in Indi...
DRDO - Defence Research and Development Organisation
DRDO responsible for the development of technology for use by the mili...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - AJAY BANGA, President - World Bank
Ajay Banga is an Indian-born American business executive who currently...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Anirudh Devgan , President, Cadence Design
Anirudh Devgan, the Global President and CEO of Cadence Design Systems...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - REVATHI ADVAITHI, CEO- Flex
Revathi Advaithi, the CEO of Flex, is a dynamic leader driving growth ...