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The Department of Telecommunications<\/a> (DoT) has put in these provisions in the recently released draft Telecommunications Bill to protect users from online financial frauds and other illegal activities.
There have been numerous instances of financial frauds committed by cyber criminals, who usually take SIM cards on fake documents and hide their real identity on OTT apps to make calls.
As per an official explainer of the Bill, every telecom user should know who is calling. “This will help in preventing cyber frauds done using telecom services. Therefore, provisions related to identity have been included in the Bill at relevant places,” said the explanatory note. Sub-section 7 under Section 4 of the draft Bill requires telecom users to declare their identity. Misrepresentation of identity by a person availing of telecommunication services can lead to imprisonment which may go up to one year, levy of a fine of up to Rs 50,000, or the suspension of telecommunication services; or a combination of these. This has been defined as a cognisable offense, meaning a police officer can arrest without a warrant and start a probe without a court’s permission.
The government has been seriously looking into the online financial frauds issue and has mandated that going forward, even the OTT platforms must complete know-your-customer (KYC) formalities of the users.
“The new Bill will tackle the situation of cyber fraud head-on and address it upfront, in not just one, but multiple dimensions. The obligation of KYC, ensuring duties on the users, including various modes of calls, in the draft telecom Bill<\/a>, and I strongly believe that with the implementation of this Bill, we can make a significant reduction in cyber frauds,” communications minister Ashwini Vaishnaw<\/a> said recently while explaining the Bill.