Telecom companies want more gear under ‘trusted source’ to keep China out

New Delhi: Telecom industry body Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) wants the ‘trusted source’ approval mandate to be applied to all network elements including connected devices, to ensure a uniform level of security.

Currently, equipment used for non-licensed telecom services does not need to follow the trusted source mandate. But in today’s connected world, any malware or virus in any of the connected devices, which could be a wireless router, sensor or any smart device, can potentially harm the entire telecom network infrastructure of the country, say telecom industry executives.