The Ministry of Transport’s tough measures continue: More than 24,000 mobile phone connections are blocked. Find out why

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) on Friday blocked 24,228 mobile connections. The move comes as part of ongoing measures against cybercrime and online fraud in the country.

Why did the DoT block these mobile connections?
The telecom department said that these over 24,000 mobile connections were linked to 42 unique International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) and there was suspicion of repeated fraudulent activities. It said that these 42 IMEI numbers were linked to three mobile numbers. It said that the telecom service providers have been directed to block these IMEI numbers across India.

The ministry explained that the crackdown was due to complaints from “good Samaritans” on the Chaksu portal. For those who don’t know, Chaksu is a government-run online portal where citizens can report suspected cyber fraud messages. Citizens can submit their complaints about identity fraud or any misuse of services through phone call, SMS or WhatsApp through the portal sancharsaathi.gov.in.

DoT blacklisted 348 connections in May 2024
Earlier in May this year, the ministry blacklisted 52 companies involved in sending malicious and phishing SMS and blocked 348 mobile phones across the country. A PTI report cited official sources as saying that the ministry had also flagged 10,834 suspicious mobile phone numbers for re-verification.

In addition, the DoT has blocked 1.58 lakh unique identification numbers (IMEI) for mobile devices as they are involved in cybercrime and financial fraud. The agency has also banned mobile connections established on the basis of fake or counterfeit documents.