Why in news
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) will be using distributed ledger technology (DLT) to register spam preferences from customers, TRAI chairman Anil Kumar Lahoti said.
Spam rules will be tightened to make commercial messages traceable, the TRAI has indicated.
TRAI's Role in Fighting Spam
TRAI regulates telecom and controls Unsolicited Commercial Communications (UCC), or spam.
Introduced the Do-Not-Disturb (DND) registry in 2007 to prevent spam calls and messages.
Created a DND app for customers to register preferences and report complaints.
Under Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference Regulation (TCCCPR), 2018, telemarketers violating DND are warned and blacklisted after repeated offenses.
Blockchain's Role in Anti-Spam Measures
TRAI mandates telecoms use blockchain to store a list of approved SMS senders.
Blockchain ensures immutability and traceability, making data tamper-proof and secure.
Regulations require traceability of messages to prevent fraudulent SMS and calls.
Blockchain helps ensure proper formats for messages and prevents spam by authenticating sender IDs.
Effectiveness of Measures
DND preferences have reduced legitimate business spam for registered users.
However, new forms of spam, including fraudulent calls and international scams, continue to bypass protections.
Fraudulent operations using disposable numbers and international calls complicate enforcement.
Additional Government Actions
Department of Telecommunications (DoT) launched the Sanchar Saathi portal to report fraudulent calls and messages.
DoT collaborates with law enforcement to cancel numbers linked to scammers.
Telecom Security Operation Centre monitors suspicious internet traffic.
Telecom firms like Airtel use AI to label suspected spam calls and are adding labels for international calls.
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