/vnd/media/agency_attachments/bGjnvN2ncYDdhj74yP9p.png)
/vnd/media/media_files/2025/12/03/sanchar-saathi-app-2025-12-03-22-08-46.jpg)
With the aim of ensuring that all citizens have access to cybersecurity, the Government had mandated the pre-installation of the Sanchar Saathi app on all smartphones. The app is secure and designed solely to protect citizens from malicious actors in the cyber world.
Sanchar Saathi also promotes jan bhagidari by enabling citizens to report cyber-fraudsters and suspicious activities while safeguarding their own information. The app has no purpose other than user protection, and it can be removed at any time. The Government has clearly stated this.
To date, 1.4 crore users have downloaded the app, contributing information on approximately 2,000 fraud incidents every day. User numbers have been rising rapidly, and the pre-installation requirement was intended to accelerate adoption and make the app readily accessible to less aware users.
In just the last 24 hours, 6 lakh citizens have registered to download the app, a ten-fold increase in uptake. This reflects the growing trust citizens are placing in the app as a Government-provided tool for their protection.
In light of Sanchar Saathi’s increasing acceptance, the Government has now decided that mobile manufacturers will no longer be required to pre-install the app.
Pankaj Mohindroo, Chairman of ICEA, said,“We welcome the Government’s decision to withdraw the earlier mandatory requirement and to remove the compulsory pre-installation associated with the Sanchar Saathi app, while maintaining a strong focus on combating cybersecurity fraud. This reflects a balanced and pragmatic policy approach that protects consumers while ensuring smooth and effective implementation for the industry.”
He added, ICEA has been relentless in its decade-long efforts to establish an ethical and fool-proof IMEI monitoring ecosystem. As an industry body committed to building a safe and trusted digital environment, ICEA strongly supports initiatives that enhance cybersecurity. At the same time, such measures are most effective when they avoid imposing mandatory obligations on users or the industry, and instead encourage adoption through clarity, practicality and confidence-building.
This decision also reaffirms the importance of comprehensive stakeholder consultation to ensure that future digital security policies are inclusive, technically robust and aligned with on-ground realities.
As India’s digital and electronics landscape continues to expand, our collective responsibility grows stronger. I remain deeply committed to working with the Government of India to advance policies that reinforce trust, strengthen national security and safeguard our long-term strategic interests.
“On matters of national security, there can be no ambiguity we stand firmly aligned with the national interest,” Mohindroo concluded.