Trai fines Jio, Airtel, BSNL in Paytm vs telcos phishing case

Bengaluru/New Delhi: The telecom regulator has imposed a penalty on Bharti Airtel Ltd, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd, among others, as they did not respond appropriately to a show-cause notice issued due to failure in block phishing activities on their networks.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has also fined Vodafone Idea Ltd, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) and Tata Teleservices in a case pertaining to One97 Communications Ltd, the parent of fintech company Paytm. In June, One97 had moved the Delhi High Court against telcos, Trai and the Centre for not blocking those who were defrauding its customers by phishing activities over mobile networks.

BSNL has been slapped with the highest fine of ₹30 crore, according to an affidavit filed by the Trai at the Delhi High Court. Mint has reviewed a copy of the affidavit. Almost 60-70% of the fraudulent messages and phishing attempts to customers have been on the BSNL network, according to industry officials.