The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has taken significant steps to ensure the secure transmission of text messages by mandating full traceability of senders of commercial messages. As part of its ongoing efforts to regulate and secure the messaging ecosystem, TRAI issued a directive on August 20, 2024, requiring all commercial messages to be traceable from senders to recipients by November 1, 2024.
In response, Access Providers have implemented the necessary technical solutions to meet this deadline. However, recognizing the need for additional time for technical upgrades and the chain declaration process by Principal Entities (PEs) and Telemarketers (TMs), TRAI, in a further directive issued on October 28, 2024, extended the deadline for full compliance to November 30, 2024.
To raise awareness about these new regulations, TRAI reached out to various sector regulators, including the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), and Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), urging them to sensitize the PEs under their jurisdiction about the importance of adhering to the new rules.
TRAI also conducted webinars in collaboration with Access Providers, which were attended by representatives from PEs, TMs, government departments, sector regulators, and industry associations. Additional interactive sessions and webinars were organized to directly engage with PEs and TMs.
Over 27,000 PEs have already registered their message chains with the relevant Access Providers due to these outreach efforts, with registration continuing at an accelerated pace. Access Providers have also been sending warning notices to PEs and TMs that have not yet made the necessary changes.
After reviewing the progress of PE-TM chain declarations, TRAI, considering requests from Access Providers and the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), has made a partial revision to its earlier directive.
The new deadline for ensuring PE-TM chain declarations is now set for December 10, 2024. In the meantime, Access Providers will continue to issue daily warning notices to PEs and TMs who have yet to comply.
Starting December 11, 2024, any messages whose sender chain is undefined or does not match the pre-registered chain will be rejected. TRAI has again urged all PEs and TMs to prioritize the declaration of their chains, emphasizing that non-compliant messages will not be processed from December 11 onward.
This move is expected to significantly enhance the traceability of commercial messages, improving the overall security and accountability of messaging services in India.