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There is going to be a huge and revolutionary change in the way smartphones and instant messaging apps are used in India. If you also use WhatsApp or Telegram only through Wi-Fi in your old phone or secondary device without inserting a SIM card, then this news is directly useful for you. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT), under the Ministry of Communications of the Central Government, has issued a notification to all major messaging platforms to crack down on cyber crime, digital arrest and fraud. ‘SIM Binding’ It has been decided to make the rule mandatory. The government has directed the companies to complete the technical changes by December 31, after which this strict rule will be fully implemented from January 1. Under the new rule, the physical SIM card or active e-SIM (eSIM) will have to be continuously present and active in the same handset with which your WhatsApp or Telegram account is registered. As soon as the SIM card is removed from the phone or is deactivated, the app’s session will immediately expire and it will stop working.
Till now, the system of creating an account in instant messaging apps was that the user had to verify his mobile number only with One Time Password (OTP). Once the OTP was entered, the account was activated. After this, even if the user removes the SIM card from the phone, inserts the SIM in another phone, or even if the SIM is switched off by the service provider, that device would continue to run WhatsApp for months and years only on the basis of Internet or Wi-Fi connection.
SIM binding is based on the same security technology currently seen in UPI and banking apps like Google Pay, PhonePe or BHIM. Under the new rules:
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The messaging app will periodically check the device hardware and SIM slot in the background (Handshake Verification) to see whether the SIM of the registered number is installed in the same phone or not.
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If the system detects that the SIM card has been removed, replaced or the SIM’s network connectivity has been permanently lost, the app’s security layer will immediately log the user out.
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However, it is a matter of relief that this will not delete the user’s chat backup or data. The app will work normally again as soon as the corresponding SIM is inserted again in the same handset.
The investigation by the ‘Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre’ (I4C), run under the Department of Telecommunications and the Ministry of Home Affairs, had revealed the shocking truth that this technical flaw was being misused in big financial scams taking place in the country, ‘digital arrests’ by posing as fake ED/CBI officers and investment frauds.
Cyber criminal gangs used to purchase SIM cards with fake KYC in the name of local citizens of India, register fake accounts on WhatsApp and Telegram with it, and then destroy the SIM or simply hand over the account to fraudsters based in countries like Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos. The fraudsters based on foreign soil used to cheat common citizens of crores of rupees by calling and messaging them from WhatsApp accounts with Indian numbers. When the police investigated, the SIM number on which the crime was registered was found to be switched off months ago. After the implementation of SIM binding, it will become completely impossible for fraudsters to remotely operate accounts from Indian numbers without a physical SIM, because for every active session it will be necessary to have a live SIM in the device.
All the major over-the-top (OTT) messaging platforms most commonly used in the country have been brought under the ambit of the guidelines issued by the government:
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Major applicable platforms: WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, ShareChat, JioChat, Josh and Arattai.
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Exemption status: According to preliminary reports, Snapchat, which focuses primarily on photo/video sharing and falls into the social media category and not just messaging, has been kept out of this mandatory binding. Whereas all other major chat apps will have to mandatory comply with it under the provisions of the Telecom Act.
After the announcement of this new rule, there are many doubts in the minds of common users regarding various devices and features, the technical solution for which has become clear:
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eSIM Users: If your phone does not have a plastic physical SIM and you use a digital e-SIM, then there is no need to panic. The device’s operating system also verifies the active eSIM as a valid SIM connection, so services for eSIM users will continue to operate without interruption.
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Apple iPhone users: Earlier, implementing SIM binding in Apple devices was considered challenging due to the strict privacy architecture of iOS. However, through recent software updates, Apple has also provided necessary API support in its system, so that the app can check the status of the SIM.
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Big relief for WhatsApp Web / Desktop users: Earlier, the government planned to automatically log out WhatsApp Web running on desktops and laptops every 6 hours for security reasons. But in view of the huge inconvenience faced by office workers and corporate workers, the government has withdrawn this 6-hour requirement. As long as your main smartphone (in which the SIM is present) remains active, you will be able to run WhatsApp Web normally on the computer.
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Tablets and Wi-Fi-only devices: If you run a primary WhatsApp account on an iPad or Android tablet without a SIM slot, it will not work directly after January 1. Such devices can be used only by connecting them to the main phone through ‘Linked Device’ (Companion Mode).
Once the rules come into effect, it is important to take some basic steps in time to ensure that there is no interruption in your important conversations and data:
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Insert the SIM into the correct phone: If your WhatsApp is running on another handset and its SIM is lying in another keypad phone or cupboard, then immediately insert that SIM in the same smartphone in which you run the app.
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Keep the SIM active and recharged: If there has been no recharge on your WhatsApp number for a long time and incoming/outgoing is about to stop, then definitely recharge it with minimum validity, so that the SIM always appears active on the telecom network.
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Precautions while traveling abroad: If you are going on a trip abroad and remove the Indian SIM to replace the local SIM there, then use a dual SIM phone or eSIM so that the Indian number also remains active in the phone and your main WhatsApp does not stop.