TRAI issues directions to telecom operators to act swiftly to stop the misuse of headers and message templates
On Thursday the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) directed all telecom service providers to re-verify registered headers and message templates on distributed ledger technologies (DLT) platform and block all unverified headers and message templates within 30 and 60 days, respectively.
TRAI issued new directions to providers to stop the misuse of headers and message templates and curb unauthorized promotions using telecom resources.
Alarmed at the rising pesky mobile calls and text messages by telemarketers, in a new directive, the telecom regulator said that the mobile operators need to ensure that temporary headers are deactivated immediately after the time duration for which such headers were created.
The telecom regulator told the mobile operators to remove confusion among recipients of messages and prevent their misuse and that no look-alike headers (headers that are similar by virtue of the combination of the small case or large case letters) are to be registered by access providers in names of different principal entities.
“Access providers have been directed to bar all telemarketers, who are not registered on the DLT platform from handling the message template scrubbing and delivery of messages to recipients through Access Providers’ network,” read the TRAI note.
It directed mobile operators to take action against erring telemarketers as per the provisions of the regulations and also initiate actions as per relevant legal laws. All the telecom service providers have been directed to comply with the above directions within 30 days.
Earlier this week, a survey revealed that two in three Indians get three or more pesky calls daily, and 50 percent said such calls originate from a personal number of people.
According to LocalCircles which conducted the survey, 45 percent of people get on average 3-5 pesky calls each day while 16 percent claimed getting 6-10 such calls per day.
Around 60 percent received most calls related to “selling financial services“, 18 percent got most calls related to “selling real estate” while 10 percent received most calls “offering a job/ earnings opportunity.”
However, complaints from consumers continued to rise and unsolicited communications are something people have been regularly discussing, according to LocalCircles.
[With Inputs from IANS]
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When every number has a known owner, is it not possible to flash the name behind the number instead of the flashing just the number? It will give the receiver the option of whether to accept the call or NOT. The telemarketers can continue doing their job the mobile operators will continue making money and the receiver will have the option.
Calls have been coming irrespective of what TRAI does. It has no control over anyone, as it happens with any govt in India. Govts come & go, people stay where they were.