Sanchar Saathi: Government-Mandated Cybersecurity App for Smartphones

The Indian Ministry of Communications has announced a directive mandating that smartphone manufacturers must pre-install a government-owned cybersecurity application called Sanchar Saathi on all new devices. Furthermore, these manufacturers must ensure that users cannot remove the application.

This order, communicated privately to selected companies on November 28, has not been publicly disclosed. It grants major phone manufacturers, including Apple, Samsung, Vivo, Oppo, and Xiaomi, a period of 90 days to ensure that the app is pre-loaded. For devices already present in the supply chain, companies have been instructed to deploy the app via software updates.

Purpose of the Sanchar Saathi Mandate

The government asserts that this mandate is crucial to safeguard against “serious endangerment” to telecom cyber security, a threat often associated with duplicate or spoofed IMEI numbers, which are frequently linked to fraud and unlawful network usage.

Concerns Regarding Apple Policy

This initiative is likely to create apprehension, particularly for Apple, which reportedly has an internal policy that forbids the pre-installation of any government or third-party application prior to the sale of a smartphone. Typically, Apple only pre-loads its own proprietary applications. The company had previously resisted an alternative anti-spam app suggested by the regulator. Although nearly all smartphones in India operate on Android, Apple’s share stands at approximately 4.5 per cent of the country’s 73.5 Crore smartphones.

Functionality of the Sanchar Saathi App

The Sanchar Saathi application leverages the unique 14 to 17-digit IMEI number inherent to each device. Users can use the app to verify IMEI numbers, report suspicious calls, and block devices that are lost or stolen via a central portal, which allows authorities to cut off network access for stolen devices. Since its launch in January, government data indicates that the platform has successfully assisted in recovering over 700,000 lost phones.