In a gazette notification, the DoT on Monday, amended the prevention of tampering of the Mobile Device Equipment Identification Number, Rules, 2017 to enforce smartphone manufacturers to register the IMEI number of every mobile manufactured in India with the Indian Counterfeit Device Restriction Portal (ICDR ) maintained by the DoT.
Furthermore, mobile phones imported in India for “sale, testing, research or any other purpose” will have to be registered by the importer with the ICDR portal prior to the import of the mobile phone into the country.
For smartphone manufacturers, the new rules go into effect from January 1, 2023, while importers of mobile phones will have to start registering the IMEI numbers from the date of publication of the rules, that is, September 26.
International Mobile Equipment Identity, or IMEI is a 15-digit code assigned to every smartphone sold around the world, and used to identify a mobile phone. It’s often shared with network operators and crime investigators to track stolen or compromised smartphones. Law enforcement agencies can use the IMEI numbers to check with network operators on the phone number being used, and to extract call detail records.
The ICDR portal, which was operationalized from January 2020 to issue IMEI certificates for the import of mobile phones through various customs ports. The new portal replaced the previous IMEI Cloning and Duplication Restriction System that was maintained by the Mobile Standard Alliance of India.
The amendment, according to cybersecurity experts, will help cut down on gray market sales of imported smartphones as they will now have to register with the portal.
“This is a welcome step by the government which will help track criminals using phones with counterfeit IMEI numbers, which are easy to flash in a mobile phone,” said cybersecurity expert Sunny Nehra.
“This will further help the government collect applicable taxes for mobile phones imported by users from other countries and brought in without the notice of customs officials,” he added.
An industry official in the know said this will further set forth a mechanism to allow consumers to block IMEI numbers of stolen smartphones, which is already under works by C-DoT, the research wing of the DoT, according to the official.
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