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   Experts "deeply concerned" by India's plan to force all smartphones to run   
   pre-installed security app   
      
   Date:   
   Tue, 02 Dec 2025 17:40:55 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   Authorities said the state-owned Sanchar Saathi app comes as a way to halt   
   cybercrime, but digital rights experts fear for users' privacy and mission   
   creep. Here's all we know.   
      
   FULL STORY   
      
   India's telecoms ministry is forcing smartphone providers to install a   
   state-owned security app, attracting strong criticism on privacy grounds.    
      
   The November 28 directive, which was first reported by Reuters , requires   
   smartphone makers to preload all new devices with the Sanchar Saathi app,   
   while existing phones will have to download the application via a software   
   update. Crucially, users won't be able to delete the software from their   
   phone.    
      
   The Indian government said the move is intended to tackle the recent surge in   
   cybercrime and hacking incidents.    
      
   While Apple, Google, Samsung, and other phone-making firms have so far kept   
   quiet, digital rights groups are "deeply concerned" about the requirement,   
   which they believe could jeopardize people's rights.    
      
   Although the full text of the order is still unavailable, the Internet    
   Freedom Foundation (IFF) argues that such an order represents "a sharp and   
   deeply worrying" expansion of executive control over citizens' digital   
   devices.    
      
   "Today, the app may be framed as a benign IMEI checker. Tomorrow, through a   
   server-side update, it could be repurposed for client-side scanning for   
   'banned' applications, flag VPN usage, correlate SIM activity, or trawl SMS   
   logs in the name of fraud detection," the civil society organization wrote in   
   a statement .    
      
   What is the Sanchar Saathi app and why it could be bad for privacy   
      
    Indian tech publication MediaNama has reported that the Sanchar Saathi app   
   stems from an initiative from India's Department of Telecommunications and is   
   designed to help users protect their devices against malicious activities,   
   such as online fraud, theft, and other crimes.    
      
   Citizens can use the app to report scams in real-time, enabling authorities    
   to track and respond to cybercrime in a more effective way.    
      
   While the application may prove useful, experts are critical of the disregard   
   for user choice. As IFF argues: "This converts every smartphone sold in India   
   into a vessel for state mandated software that the user cannot meaningfully   
   refuse, control, or remove."   
      
   IFFs comments echo concerns raised by technology lawyer Mishi Choudhary, who   
   told Reuters: "The government effectively removes user consent as a    
   meaningful choice."    
      
   However, concerns extend beyond user choice. There is a real risk that    
   current or future governments could expand the app's scope, effectively   
   turning it into a surveillance tool, which would compromise privacy even for   
   those using one of the best VPN services.    
      
   As the IFF notes, "Nothing in the order constrains these possibilities."    
      
   The IFF has now filed a complaint with India's telecoms body and says it will   
   keep fighting "until it is rescinded." It now remains to be seen if the likes   
   of Apple and Google will also follow suit in challenging the order.    
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/experts-deeply-concerned-by   
   -indias-plan-to-force-all-smartphones-to-run-pre-installed-security-app   
      
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