Govt blocks 669K SIM cards, 132K IMEIs to curb cybercrimes, Centre tells RS

The Centre has blocked 669,000 SIM cards and 132,000 International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers reported by police authorities to check cyber crimes in the country, Rajya Sabha was informed Wednesday.

In a written reply to a question, Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar said the central government and Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) have devised a system to identify and block incoming international spoofed calls displaying Indian mobile numbers appearing to be originating within India.

"Such international spoofed calls have been made by cyber criminals in recent cases of fake digital arrests, fedex scams and impersonation as government and police officials," the minister said.

Directions have been issued to the TSPs for blocking of such incoming international spoofed calls, he said.

"Till November 15, 2024, more than 669,000 fake SIM cards and 132,000 IMEIs as reported by police authorities have been blocked by the government of India," he said.

The citizen financial cyber fraud reporting and management system under I4C has been launched in year 2021 for immediate reporting of financial frauds and to stop siphoning off funds by the fraudsters, he said.

"So far, financial amount of more than Rs 3,431 crore has been saved in more than 9.94 lakh complaints," he said.