India Mandates Non-Deletable ‘Sanchar Saathi’ Cybersecurity App on All New Smartphones
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Key Takeaways
- Government mandate: India's telecoms ministry has ordered smartphone manufacturers to preload the state-owned Sanchar Saathi app on all new devices.
- Non-deletable requirement: A key provision states that the pre-installed app cannot be deleted by users, raising privacy concerns.
- Improved cybersecurity: The move is expected to bolster telecom cybersecurity.
India is joining authorities worldwide in a significant move to bolster telecom cybersecurity. The country's telecoms ministry has issued a private order to smartphone makers, mandating the pre-installation of the Sanchar Saathi app on all new devices. The November 28 order gives major companies like Apple, Samsung, Vivo, Oppo, and Xiaomi 90 days to implement the requirement.
The ministry sent the order, which Reuters has seen, to select companies, asking manufacturers to push the app to phones via software updates for devices already in the supply chain.
Sanchar Saathi - Pre-Installed App
A key component of the Sanchar Saathi app mandate is the requirement that the app remain non-deletable, making it a permanent feature on new phones sold in India. The measure is intended to help curb cybercrime by preventing the misuse of stolen or lost mobile phones.
The Sanchar Saathi app is designed to help users track and block lost or stolen phones and identify fraudulent mobile connections using a central registry, Reuters has reported. Government figures indicate the app has already helped recover over 700,000 lost phones since its launch in January.
Technology lawyers argue that such a measure removes meaningful user consent. The policy puts manufacturers, particularly Apple, in a difficult position, as they have historically resisted government requests to pre-load software that is not their own.
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