TRAI asks telcos to block violators

TRAI’s 100SMS/day move to ward of unwanted callers was extended, with additional 100 SMSes after almost a month. Soon after, it faced yet another challenge when telemarketers started using international servers to send pesky messages. TRAI had disclosed that it has no control over messages that came from servers overseas. However, that did not deter TRAI trying to find a solution for this problem, with the other telcos in support. TRAI now asks telcos to find and block violators using international servers, reports Business Standard.

Block violators (Image credit: Getty Images)

"The operators have been asked to track Internet from servers outside India, which is being used by telemarketers to send unwanted messages. Telemarketers are playing a cat and mouse race. They are going one step ahead than what we do," TRAI Chairman, R.S. Sarma told reporters on the sidelines of the National Telecom Summit, 2011 on Friday.

Reportedly, subscribers of the National Customer Preference Registry (previously called the National Do Not Call Registry) have complained that unwanted calls/messages don’t seem to halt. Moreover, such pesky calls are usually related to real estate. The unwanted messages market is said to be worth more than Rs. 335 crore and service operators sell bulk packages of such SMSes.

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