TRAI changes spam call rules; outgoing services to be suspended for 15 days for the first violation..
TRAI has issued new regulations to curb spam calls and intrusive commercial calls. Now, if a telecom company's AI- or machine learning-based system flags a call from a specific number as 'Suspected Spam,' action can be taken without waiting for a customer complaint. TRAI has issued the Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2026.
What happens if a spam call is detected by AI? Under the new rules, the telecom company that identifies a call as suspected spam must share details of that call within two hours with the operator from whose network the call originated.
Subsequently, the Originating Access Provider (OAP) must identify the KYC details of the sender associated with that number within one business day. Following this, other telecom operators will check their systems to see if there are other connections linked to the same suspected sender from the past 10 days.
If five or more CLI (Calling Line Identification) numbers associated with the sender are found to be suspicious within 10 days, the concerned telecom companies must take action against them.
**Outgoing services suspended for 15 days for the first offense**
If a violation is detected for the first time via the AI system, outgoing services for all telecom resources belonging to the sender may be suspended for 15 days. This includes connections that were not used for the specific spam communication in question.
In the event of a repeat violation, all telecom resources of the sender—such as SIM cards, PRI, and SIP trunks—may be disconnected for up to one year. During this period, the sender will be blacklisted and denied any new telecom resources. In serious cases, complaints may also be lodged with law enforcement agencies.
New rules for apps like Truecaller
Under TRAI's new regulations, call management apps or similar services will not be permitted to automatically tag, block, or filter calls originating from number series designated by the authority—such as those starting with '160'. However, users will retain the ability to manually block or filter any call on their devices according to their own preferences.
New method to stop promotional calls
Customers wishing to block all categories of telemarketing calls must send an SMS with the text "BLOCK PROMO" to 1909. This will block promotional commercial communications without affecting transactional, service-related, or government communications.
According to TRAI, existing preferences registered under the 'FULLY BLOCK' category will be migrated to the 'BLOCK PROMO' category within 15 days of the notification. The new rules will be implemented in stages, with the entire process completed within 30 to 90 days following the notification.
Disclaimer: This content has been sourced and edited from News18 Hindi. While we have made modifications for clarity and presentation, the original content belongs to its respective authors and website. We do not claim ownership of the content.
