{"id":1303152,"date":"2025-12-02T13:47:43","date_gmt":"2025-12-02T08:17:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/?p=1303152"},"modified":"2025-12-02T13:48:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-02T08:18:13","slug":"govt-orders-smartphone-brands-to-pre-install-cyber-safety-app-in-all-new-smartphones-in-next-90-days","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/govt-orders-smartphone-brands-to-pre-install-cyber-safety-app-in-all-new-smartphones-in-next-90-days\/","title":{"rendered":"Govt Orders Smartphone Brands To Pre-Install Cyber Safety App In All New Smartphones, In Next 90 Days"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>India has issued a sweeping new directive requiring all smartphone manufacturers to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cedxyvx74p4o\">pre-install<\/a> the government\u2019s cyber safety app, <strong>Sanchar Saathi<\/strong>, on every new device sold in the country. While the move aims to curb mobile-related fraud and track stolen devices, it has triggered widespread concerns over digital privacy and potential surveillance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"784\" src=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-02-at-1.46.39-PM-1024x784.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1303163\" srcset=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-02-at-1.46.39-PM-1024x784.png 1024w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-02-at-1.46.39-PM-300x230.png 300w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-02-at-1.46.39-PM-768x588.png 768w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-02-at-1.46.39-PM-1536x1175.png 1536w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-02-at-1.46.39-PM.png 1968w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What the Government Has Ordered<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has mandated that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Every smartphone manufactured or imported into India within the next 90 days must come with the Sanchar Saathi app pre-installed.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The app must be <strong>non-removable, non-disableable<\/strong>, and clearly visible during device setup.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Phone makers must also attempt to add the app through software updates for unsold inventory already in the supply chain.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Compliance reports must be submitted within <strong>120 days<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The order is aimed at strengthening telecom cybersecurity in a market with <strong>1.2 billion+ mobile subscribers<\/strong> and a large second-hand device ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why the Government Says It\u2019s Necessary<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Sanchar Saathi, launched earlier this year, enables users to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Check IMEI authenticity<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Block or track stolen phones<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Report fraudulent communication<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The government says duplicate or spoofed IMEIs pose a \u201cserious cyber risk\u201d and facilitate crimes such as mobile cloning, scams, and the reselling of stolen devices. Officials claim the platform helped recover <strong>over 7 lakh lost or stolen phones<\/strong>, including <strong>50,000 in October 2025 alone<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Privacy Experts Raise Red Flags<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite its stated purpose, the directive has drawn sharp criticism:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF)<\/strong> argues the requirement turns every smartphone into \u201ca permanent, non-consensual access point\u201d for the state.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Experts highlight that the app requests extensive permissions\u2014from camera to storage\u2014raising questions about potential surveillance.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The non-removable nature undermines operating system safeguards designed to prevent one app from accessing another\u2019s data.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Technology analysts also note that the order contradicts existing policies of global smartphone makers, especially <strong>Apple<\/strong>, which historically refuses government-mandated pre-installs. Reuters reports that Apple does not intend to comply and will raise its objections with the government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A Global Trend of Tighter Device Control<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>India is not alone. In August, Russia required all devices to come pre-loaded with the state-backed MAX messenger app, triggering similar fears over user tracking and privacy erosion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/sci-tech\/technology\/pre-install-sanchar-saathi-app-on-new-phones-by-march-2026-dot-tells-phone-makers\/article70345721.ece\">Image Source<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><\/h1>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>India has issued a sweeping new directive requiring all smartphone manufacturers to pre-install the government\u2019s cyber safety app, Sanchar Saathi, on every new device sold in the country. While the move aims to curb mobile-related fraud and track stolen devices, it has triggered widespread concerns over digital privacy and potential surveillance. What the Government Has [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":1303163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[9037],"class_list":["post-1303152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-sanchar-saathi-app"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Govt Orders Smartphone Brands To Pre-Install Cyber Safety App In All New Smartphones, In Next 90 Days - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/govt-orders-smartphone-brands-to-pre-install-cyber-safety-app-in-all-new-smartphones-in-next-90-days\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Govt Orders Smartphone Brands To Pre-Install Cyber Safety App In All New Smartphones, In Next 90 Days - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"India has issued a sweeping new directive requiring all smartphone manufacturers to pre-install the government\u2019s cyber safety app, Sanchar Saathi, on every new device sold in the country. While the move aims to curb mobile-related fraud and track stolen devices, it has triggered widespread concerns over digital privacy and potential surveillance. 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