TRAI Issues Directions to Access Service Providers for Taking Measures to Curb Misuse of Messaging Services

Introduction

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on 20 August 2024 issued new directions to prevent fraudulent activities from being committed through promotional and transactions commercial messages (Directions). Some parts of the Directions have been subsequently revised by TRAI on 30 August 2024 to provide additional time period for certain compliances (Revised Directions). The Directions, read with the Revised Directions, follow a slew of directions that have been released in the recent past to combat the menace of unsolicited commercial communications (UCC).

Background

TRAI noted that despite the Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference Regulations, 2018 (TCCCPR) that was notified to regulate unsolicited commercial communication, registered Headers and Content Templates have been misused to fraudulently deceive members of the public. According to TCCCPR, any commercial communication using telecom resources such as SMS and phone calls, is required to take place inter alia using registered headers (Headers) and registered content templates for both transactional and services messages (Content Templates) that are assigned to a particular sender (Sender). Headers assigned to business entities help users/ recipients identify such businesses when receiving commercial communication.

TRAI noted multiple malpractices such as (a) misuse of registered headers and templates, Entity ID, Header ID, Content Template ID, (b) usage of words like ‘disconnections’, ‘lottery’, ‘OTP’, etc. in Content Templates which did not match the business of the Senders, (c) inclusion of malicious APKs and URLs in messages, (d) registration of promotional messages under the service / transactional messages category, etc. Previous directions issued by TRAI

To resolve these issues and to increase traceability of messages, TRAI has in the past, issued multiple directions that, TRAI notes, have not been fully implemented by the Access Providers.

 Some key directions include:

Key directions issued by TRAI

In light of the above, TRAI has issued the following directions:

Access Providers are directed to comply with the Directions and furnish status reports to TRAI with updated Codes of Practice within 15 days from the date of issuance of the Revised Directions.

Comments

Given the rise in misleading and deceitful promotional messages via telecom resources, TRAI’s Directions are a welcome step. By requiring transmission of only whitelisted APKs, URLs, OTT links, etc. TRAI seeks to prevent various scams that cause victims to lose funds through deception. Blacklisting miscategorized Content Templates and suspending services for repeat offenders could also serve as a major deterrent for social miscreants. TRAI also seeks to identify and catch offenders by enhancing message traceability between Senders and recipients. TRAI’s proactive approach, involving specific directions to Access Providers with strict timelines after considering the on-ground position, could serve as a long-term solution in ensuring a clean and secure messaging ecosystem for consumers. However, the efficacy of the Directions will lie in the strict implementation and adherence to timelines by all entities. It is possible that there may be disruptions in the delivery of certain transactional and service messages in the process, which may also lead to hardship for consumers.

• Harsh Walia (Partner); Shobhit Chandra (Counsel) and Khyati Goel (Associate)