DoT Flags 6.8 Lakh Mobile Connections For Re-Verification In Crackdown

The Department of Telecom has directed telecom operators to verify more than 6 lakh mobile connections suspected to have been obtained using invalid, non-existent, or fake documents, an official statement said on Thursday. The DoT has issued directives to telecom operators to carry out immediate re-verification of the identified mobile numbers within 60 days.

"DoT has identified approximately 6.80 lakh mobile connections suspected to have been obtained using invalid, non-existent, or fake and forged Proof of Identity and Proof of Address KYC documents," the statement said.

The department has flagged around 6.80 lakh mobile connections as potentially fraudulent after advanced AI-driven analysis.

"The questionable veracity of the PoI/PoA KYC documents suggests the use of fabricated documents for obtaining these mobile connections. DoT has issued directives to the TSPs to carry out immediate re-verification of these identified mobile numbers. All TSPs are mandated to re-verify the flagged connections within 60 days. Failure to complete re-verification will result in the disconnection of the concerned mobile numbers," the statement said.

In April, DoT flagged 10,834 suspected mobile numbers for re-verification. Of these, 8,272 mobile connections were disconnected failing re-verification.