Indian Smartphone Users Can Block And Track Lost Or Stolen Phones: Here’s How Sanchar Saathi Will Work

To address the growing problem of losing a smartphone or getting a mobile phone stolen, the Indian government has launched the Sanchar Saathi portal. Using the platform, Indians will now be able to block and track their lost or stolen mobile phones across India.

The Department of Telecom (DoT) launched the Sanchar Saathi portal this week. Union telecom minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has claimed using the portal, people will be able to block, track and check the genuineness of a pre-owned device before buying them.

Here's How The Sanchar Saathi Portal Works

The Sanchar Saathi portal relies on the CEIR (Central Equipment Identity Register) which is maintained by the Indian government's Telecom department. Essentially, the government has made it mandatory to disclose the IMEI of every smartphone or mobile phone with cellular connectivity in India

International Mobile Equipment Identity or IMEDI is a 15-digit unique numeric identifier of a phone. The Indian government has mandated that every IMEI of every mobile device must be fed into the registry before its sale in India.

The Sanchar Saathi portal's facilities have been developed by C-DoT, which is the technology development arm under the Department of Telecom. C-DoT has been able to add a feature that allows the investigation of cloned mobile phones across all telecom networks operational in India.

To track a lost or stolen mobile phone, head over to the Sanchar Saathi portal. There are simple tabs about reporting the incident. The portal asks for standard documentation for identity verification, and there's a requirement of undertaking ownership and responsibility.

After filling in all the relevant and needed information, "the portal will interact with law enforcement agencies and telecom service providers and block your lost mobile phone," mentioned Vaishnaw.

Indians Can Also Check For Genuineness, Duplication, Or Cloning

There is also a Know Your Mobile facility on the Sanchar Saathi portal. It will help users verify the genuineness of second-hand mobile phones before buying them.

Additionally, there's a TAFCOP facility to help people check if there are other mobile numbers working in their name without their permission or knowledge. "We feel confident that at least with these reforms, at least the rising trends in cyber frauds will be seriously controlled and we will be able to bring them down," added Vaishnaw.

Apple already has a "Track My iPhone" solution to block and subsequently recover iPhone devices. Google is working on a similar solution. However, the Indian government's platform will work on all mobile phones irrespective of the manufacturer or brand as it relies on IMEI.