Scam calls: Paytm submits list of 3,500 phone numbers to MHA, others

Paytm Payments Bank (PPB) on Friday said it has submitted to the home ministry, Trai and CERT-In a list of 3,500 phone numbers used to make scam calls to dupe consumers in the country.

PPB claimed that it has also filed an FIR against these people with Cyber Cell for an immediate action to stop this scam.

"In a series of meetings with officials from the Trai, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and CERT-In, PPB charted out and explained the various phishing and fraudulent mobile phone SMS and call scams affecting digital payments users.

"In its discussions with the authorities, the company has made it clear that these frauds erode the trust of millions of Indians," PPB said in a statement.

It added that banks like PPB can identify the phone numbers of these fraudsters and prevent future frauds and scams with proactive involvement of law enforcement, regulators and telecom operators.

"PPB has submitted a comprehensive list of 3,500 phone numbers to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), MHA, and CERT-In, which have been actively involved in SMS and call scams. To further ensure the security of digital payments users, PPB has filed an FIR against these criminals with Cyber Cell for an immediate action to stop this scam," it said.

CERT-In a functional organisation under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology with the object of securing Indian cyber space.

PPB - in its conversations with the authorities - has emphasised the need for timely and effective legal action to end this menace with the involvement and support of telecom operators, the statement added.

"We are extremely happy to see the proactiveness shown by Trai and MHA in this regard... We are committed to ensuring that we block as many fraudsters and will continue to enhance our app security so that there's no stone left unturned towards safe digital payments experience," PPB MD and CEO Satish Gupta said.

PPB said these organisations have also been given a list of SMS shortcodes where the company's brand name has been falsely used in the sender identification details.

It said fraudsters send SMSes withshortcodes "PYTM" to gain trust of the user, and then defraud them.

A list of shortcodes that need to be blocked as well as the company's correct header 'iPaytm' has been submitted with Trai. The company said it has requested Trai to prohibit telcos from using/selling any shortcode similar to the word 'Paytm' such as 'PYTM'.

"Telecom operators should be directed to have stringent control on the issuance of shortcodes for bulk messages to companies. There is also a need to blacklist companies permitting such SMSes to be sent," Gupta said.