Govt Withdraws Order Making Sanchar Saathi App Mandatory on Smartphones

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Communications on Wednesday rolled back its directive mandating the pre-installation of the Sanchar Saathi app on all smartphones, days after the move triggered criticism from digital rights groups and opposition parties.

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had earlier directed manufacturers to ship all devices with the cybersecurity app preloaded from March 2026, citing the need to curb phones with duplicate or spoofed IMEI numbers that posed potential telecom-security risks.

Following widespread pushback over privacy concerns, the Centre announced that manufacturers will no longer be required to pre-install the app.

Surge in downloads leads to reversal

In a press release, the government said the decision was reconsidered due to the “increasing acceptance” of Sanchar Saathi among the public. It claimed the app saw a significant jump in adoption after the initial announcement, with six lakh new registrations recorded in a single day — nearly ten times the usual volumes.

“Given Sanchar Saathi’s increasing acceptance, Government has decided not to make the pre-installation mandatory for mobile manufacturers,” the statement read.

Launched in 2023, the app enables users to report suspicious calls and cyber frauds. It currently has 1.4 crore registered users, collectively logging around 2,000 fraud-related complaints daily.

Privacy concerns at the centre of debate

The earlier directive had faced resistance from digital rights bodies and opposition leaders, who flagged potential risks of surveillance and lack of user autonomy. The government, however, maintained that Sanchar Saathi is “secure and purely meant to help citizens from bad actors in the cyber world”, and clarified that users retain the option to uninstall the app at any time.