New Delhi, July 29 (IANS) Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia on Tuesday launched the Sanchar Saathi mobile application in Hindi and 21 regional languages.

Originally launched in January 2025, the application allowed users to report suspicious communications, block or trace lost or stolen phones, and check for unauthorised mobile connections.

The application is now available on both Android and iOS platforms, empowering citizens across India with multilingual digital safety tools. Around 46 lakh users have already downloaded the application, an official statement said.

So far, over 82 lakh fake mobile connections have been disconnected, and more than 35 lakh lost or stolen phones have been blocked. The initiative has also successfully prevented 1.35 crore spoofed international calls within just 24 hours of launching this system. The system has affected 97 per cent reduction in such calls.

Under the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) system of Sanchar Saathi, 35.49 lakh lost or stolen devices have been blocked, 21.57 lakh traced, and 5.19 lakh recovered. Today, Sanchar Saathi has onboarded 620 organisations, including central agencies, state police forces, telecom service providers (TSPs), and GSTN, to form a strong collaborative network to counter telecom fraud and cyber threats across the country.

This citizen-centric digital safety initiative ‘Sanchar Saathi,’ integrates advanced tools such as Central Equipment Identity Register to block stolen or lost phones, Digital Intelligence Platform, AI-based systems to detect connections taken on fake documents, and Financial Fraud Risk Indicator (FFRI) to detect and prevent potential frauds. It has recorded remarkable progress in securing India’s telecom ecosystem, the release added.

The Sanchar Saathi portal has seen massive public engagement, with 16 crore visits and an average of 2 lakh users every day. The AI-powered ASTR tool, citizen reports, and stakeholder inputs have successfully disconnected over 4.7 crore mobile connections. The initiative has also led to the blocking of 5.1 lakh mobile handsets, disengagement of 24.46 lakh WhatsApp accounts, and blacklisting of 20,000 bulk SMS senders involved in fraudulent activities.

The minister also met officials in the Department of Telecommunications under the Sanchar Saathi initiative to ideate and further strengthen efforts against telecom-related cyber frauds.

–IANS

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