TRAI Slams Telecoms with ₹150 Cr Fine Over Spam Calls, Customer Complaint Failures

• TRAI imposed a ₹150 crore fine on telecom companies for failing to curb fake calls/messages and wrongly closing customer complaints since 2020.
• The fine targets operators' inaction against spammers, not just spam on their networks, with penalties up to ₹50 lakh per month per service area.
• TRAI disconnected 2.1 million spammer connections and blacklisted over 100,000 entities; the DND app facilitates easy complaint filing.
• Spam calls lead to significant financial fraud (estimated ₹20,000 crore loss in 2025), personal data theft, and mental stress for over 60% of mobile users.
• Most spam originates from unregistered individuals using 10-digit mobile numbers, targeting OTPs, bank details, and UPI PINs.

Why It Matters: TRAI penalizes telcos ₹150 Cr for failing to protect customers from rampant spam and fraud.