Introduction
In a decisive move to combat the ongoing issue of unsolicited
commercial communications and fraudulent activities conducted by
spammers, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has
issued directions to access service providers on 13 August 2024
(Directions). The Directions underscore the importance of strict
compliance with requirements under the Telecom Commercial
Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2018 (TCCCPR), with
a particular focus on the blacklisting provisions for unregistered
senders or telemarketers.
Introduced in 2018, the TCCCPR envisaged to establish a robust
framework aimed at curbing spam phone calls and SMSs, utilizing a
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT)-based system to manage consumer
consent and enforce penalties on violators. Under the TCCCPR,
senders/ principal entities and telemarketers are required to carry
out the prescribed regulatory pre-checks before sending or making
any commercial communication.
