The telecom regulator has also received inputs from political parties and they would also be required to obtain consent from consumers
Troubled with pesky calls and messages on your mobile phone? Relief is on way as telecom regulator Trai has announced draft stringent norms for dealing with this menace and that too, with new blockchain technology.
On Tuesday, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) issued new draft norms to curb pesky calls and SMSes by using blockchain technology. This will allow telemarketing messages to be sent only to the subscribers by authorized entities.
"Consumers will take much better control. Customers preference will instantaneously get activated while digital consent is taken that can be reviewed, modified and removed at any time by respective subscribers," Trai Chairman RS Sharma said.
The proposed approach will use blockchain technology or distributed ledger which is cryptographically secured. Mobile numbers of subscribers would not be circulated for privacy concerns under the new guidelines.
Blockchain technology will ensure two things – non-repudiative and confidentiality.
The new technology-based norms will record all communication between subscribers and entities, capturing customer consent for information and authorised telemarketing agencies. Only those authorised to access details will be able to access subscriber details and only when they need to deliver service, Sharma said.
The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations 2018 draft will be open for public comment till June 11.
Last year in September 2017, Trai had come out with a consultation paper seeking views from the stakeholders to curb unsolicited commercial communication.
Trai said it was brought to their notice that some business entities were even misusing the names of government agencies to send commercial texts to subscribers. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) had asked Trai to check the misuse of messages being sent under their headers.
Also, a subscriber may have given consent for a service but that consent is liable to be misused. Under the proposed regulation, the subscriber will be able to revoke consent given to entities whenever he or she desires through Trai app and other mechanisms that will be provided under the regulation.
The new provisions will be integrated into existing DND (Do Not Disturb) app.
Trai has also received inputs from political parties and they would also be required to obtain consent from consumers. Around 30 billion unsolicited messages a month are sent on mobile networks in India.
The regulations to curb unsolicited calls have been there earlier, but have not been that successful as telemarketing companies find a way to flout rules.
POLITICAL INPUTS
- The telecom regulator has also received inputs from political parties and they would also be required to obtain consent from consumers.
- Around 30 billion unsolicited messages a month are sent on mobile networks.
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