The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has taken strong measures to tackle various online frauds that have been ongoing for some time. Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman of TRAI, announced that telecom companies will now use phone numbers starting with the ‘1600’ series. Calls from any number beginning with 1600 can be recognized as legitimate and coming from Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) companies. In an interview with ET Telecom, Lahoti explained that this number series is specifically introduced for transaction and service-related calls from the banking, financial, and insurance sectors.
With this step, scammers won’t be able to fake calls from banks or insurance firms anymore. This will help people quickly identify which calls are genuine and which ones can be ignored.
Experts believe that the new number series will help reduce fraud cases, as people will avoid answering calls that don’t begin with 1600. Additionally, if someone does answer, fraudsters won’t be able to pretend to be bank or insurance employees, making it harder for them to carry out scams.
According to Lahoti, telecom companies have been allocated the 1600 number series specifically for use by banking, financial, and insurance companies. TRAI has also urged the regulatory authorities overseeing these sectors to encourage the companies under their jurisdiction to adopt this system promptly. Notably, some BFSI companies have already begun using this series, with SBI Card being among the first. This new number series will help people easily recognize legitimate and secure calls.
In 2022, TRAI set up a Joint Committee of Regulators including representatives from RBI, SEBI, IRDAI, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Department of Telecommunications. The committee designed this system to curb fraudulent calls made using telecom resources in the BFSI sector. As adoption grows, it will become easier for everyone to recognize legitimate calls from banks and insurance providers.
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