DoT cautions citizens against SIM fraud and IMEI tampering

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) cautioned citizens against fraudulent issuance of SIM cards, misuse of telecom identifiers, and tampering with IMEI numbers, warning that such violations under the Telecommunications Act, 2023 can attract imprisonment of up to three years and a fine of up to ₹50 lakh. The advisory followed the detection of a fraudulent SIM-issuance racket in Chhattisgarh, where mobile connections were activated using citizens' identity documents without their knowledge. DoT specifically warned against using, procuring or assembling devices such as modems, modules or SIM boxes with configurable or tampered IMEIs, and against procuring SIM cards through fake documents or impersonation, or transferring one's own SIM card to others who may misuse it. The government has separately reported blocking more than 15 lakh SIM cards and nearly 6 lakh IMEIs linked to cyber fraud this year, preventing scams worth an estimated ₹11,000 crore - part of a broader push on telecom-identity security relevant to both digital-literacy and cyber-crime General Awareness questions.