• Union IT and Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw unveiled the Chakshu portal under the umbrella of ‘Sanchar Saathi’ to enable subscribers to report suspected fraud calls, messages like lottery offers, job offers and even suspected leak of phone numbers by businesses.

• Department of Telecommunications (DoT) also launched ‘Digital Intelligence Platform’ (DIP) for coordination among the stakeholders to curb misuse of telecom resources in cyber-crime and financial frauds.

• The minister said that through digital measures to check fraud and crime, the DoT services have been able to help citizens save around Rs 1,000 crore in the last nine months and Rs 1,008 crore has been frozen in various bank accounts that were linked to fraudulent transactions.

• The minister said that 1 crore mobile numbers have been disconnected in the last nine months that were linked to malicious activities.

Sanchar Saathi

• With 117 crore subscribers, India has emerged as the second largest telecom ecosystem in the world. 

• In addition to communication, mobile phones are being used for banking, entertainment, elearning, healthcare, availing government services, etc. 

• It is therefore crucial that the users are protected from various frauds such as identity theft, forged KYC, theft of mobile devices, banking frauds, etc.

• Sanchar Saathi portal is a citizen centric initiative of DoT to empower mobile subscribers, strengthen their security and increase awareness about citizen centric initiatives of the government.

• It empowers citizens by allowing them to know the mobile connections issued in their name, get disconnected the connections either not taken by them or not required by them, block and trace stolen/lost mobile phones and check genuineness of devices while buying a new/old mobile phone. 

• Sanchar Saathi facilitates citizens for reporting suspected fraud communication.

Chakshu facility

• Chakshu is the latest addition to the citizen centric facilities already available on the Sanchar Saathi portal of DoT. 

• Chakshu facilitates citizens to report suspected fraud communication received over call, SMS or WhatsApp with the intention of defrauding like KYC expiry or update of bank account/payment wallet/ SIM/gas connection/ electricity connection, sextortion, impersonation as government official/relative for sending money, disconnection of all mobile numbers by Department of Telecommunications. etc.

• Subscribers can report about the number of leaks on the Chakshu portal and action will be taken against the culprit.

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store