'On national security issues, there can be no compromise.'
The missive has, however, polarised stakeholders, with mobile operators under COAI coming out in its support, while digital platforms under the aegis of Broadband India Forum expressing "serious concerns" around overreach and calling for a pause in implementation of timelines.
App-based communication services providers and Indian telcos are at loggerheads over the SIM-binding directions issued by the department of telecom, which are to be complied with by the end of February 2026.
The Indian government has directed app-based communication services like WhatsApp and Telegram to ensure continuous linkage to a user's active SIM card to combat cyber fraud. Non-compliance will result in penalties under the Telecommunications Act, 2023.
According to the direction dated November 28, all mobile phones that will be manufactured in India or imported after 90 days from the date of issuing of the order will need to have the app.
The outcome of the investigations essentially formed the basis for the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to issue a sweeping directive on November 28 last year, mandating that app-based communication services like WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal must be continuously linked to an active, physical SIM card within the device.
'Instead of the government and telecom operators solving the mess of their own creation, they're telling us we need to give access to our phones perpetually.'
Let her know that you are in a happy marriage and you are not comfortable with her behaviour, advises rediffGURU Ravi Mittal.
'Just like oral hygiene, cyber hygiene must become a daily habit,' says Beena Vaheed, executive director, Bank of Baroda. 'It is not enough to rely only on banks, companies, or the government. Each of us must play our part.'
'Grassroots-level corruption, which disrupts the last-mile work, cannot be ignored in your enthusiasm and drive to get going to complete the project.' 'Like it was in MGNREGA, in some states, it is the case with the Jal Jeevan mission.' 'The last minute levels of corruption can ruin the intent of the project itself.' 'When you see that people can game a particular well-intended and well-crafted project, you need to correct that.'
Here's what you must know about the new rule, its implications, and whether it affects taxpayers' rights and privacy.
Meta, which owns the popular messaging app, said it has fixed the glitch, and the service was back.
A WhatsApp spokesperson said the update 'does not impact the privacy of personal messages for anyone'.
The directions follow a report by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, which has seen a new pattern of transnational cyber-enabled financial fraud and investment scam, impersonating as stockbrokers and company executives.
Bisht used the fake profiles to connect with women aged between 18 and 30 years on various onlione dating platforms.
WhatsApp on Tuesday said its latest policy update does not affect the privacy of messages as the Facebook-owned company sought to address concerns around security of user data on the platform.
'WhatsApp is storing our data on servers which are physically located in another country.' 'We might be having good relations with a particular country at this very moment, where WhatsApp's data servers are located, and in which our data is stored, but tomorrow we might be having bad relations with them, then what is going to happen to that data.'
The prosecution has alleged that the victim, also an actor, was induced into a relationship by Khan.
While the users of the three social media platforms remained clueless as they repeatedly received error messages for most part of the day, the stocks of Silicon Valley firm Facebook dropped by nearly five per cent as a result.
WhatsApp has made the statement before Justice Yashwant Varma who was hearing a lawsuit by one of the aggrieved parties whose identity was earlier allowed to remain concealed by the court.
In a bid to curb the spread of fake news, the US-based company is testing a feature, which enables users to detect harmful links sent and received.
The latest move comes as countries, including India, are initiating measures to tackle the spread of rumours, fake news and misinformation on social media platforms.
Fraudsters lure individuals with false promises of recovering bonuses or maturity proceeds from lapsed policies.
The saffron party's IT cell had realised the power of WhatsApp early in the day and wielded it to devastating effect in the Bengal elections.
Link your UPI app to a separate bank account or wallet that has only a limited sum.
'This is a Frankenstein's monster that will engulf us all in its rage and greed.' 'This fake news/WhatsApp forwards industry -- and especially, the use of it in politics -- is one of the biggest threats to our world today,' warns Amit Mehra.
'I don't know whether the top Gujarati leaders of Indian politics (Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah) in Delhi realise that the narrative of HindiHinduHindustan will eventually destroy their own language too.'
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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday raided the premises of businessman Raj Kundra, the husband of actor Shilpa Shetty, and some others as part of a money laundering case linked to alleged distribution of pornographic content. Around 15 locations in Mumbai and Uttar Pradesh are being searched. The probe pertains to the role of suspects in alleged distribution of pornographic content through mobile applications and other modes.
'As the weeks passed, we saw our group changing.' 'It was becoming a microcosm of the world outside -- a world we had hoped would never intrude into this space,' says Veenu Sandhu.
'Even known names and social media handles went berserk by stating that Karachi has been attacked and an F-16 was shot down.'
Shortly after a controversy erupted over government's plans to snoop on every message sent through WhatsApp, SMS, e-mail or any such service, the Department of Electronics and Information Technology clarified that social media websites and applications will be exempted from the purview of the draft National Encryption Policy.
'Imagine having a conversation with your parents, where you say, "I want to break up with someone because he's bad in bed".'
Sally Holkar left America and made India her home nearly 60 years ago. She went on a mission to revive a dying craft and changed the lives of rural weavers.
'Everything they read on social media, they believe, is the truth.' 'One of the biggest challenges in the country today is how to counter fake news and propaganda.'
Amid a raging debate over privacy offered by messaging platforms like WhatsApp, terrorist groups and their handlers from Pakistan are switching to new applications which include one developed by a Turkish company, officials in Srinagar said.
'Check every SMS you get. Many people ignore them.' 'Remember if there is an activity in your account, your financial institution will send you an SMS, not a WhatsApp message.'
The gang planned to use sophisticated weapons, including AK-47, from Pakistan for the attack, the official said.
'I want to die with my finger on the click button of the camera,' veteran photographer Pradeep Bandekar, who passed into ages early on Sunday morning, told Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
'In the audience's mind there is no urgency to go see a film in the theatre.' 'If you pay for social media buzz it does not convert into bums on seats.'
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