India's Telecom Ministry Bars Data Export, Cuts 8.8 Million Fraudulent Mobile Lines

On July 24, 2026 the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) issued new security regulations that prohibit telecom infrastructure providers from storing or transmitting telecom‑related data outside India. The rules apply to operators of mobile towers, fibre networks, satellite gateways, data centres and cloud‑based telecom services, and create a new regulatory category for Cloud‑Hosted Telecommunication Network Providers (CHTNPs) subject to audits and continuous monitoring. The measure is intended to strengthen cybersecurity and protect critical digital infrastructure as the country expands 5G, satellite and cloud‑based telecom services.

A day earlier, the DoT announced the use of an artificial‑intelligence and big‑data platform called ASTR to identify and disconnect about 88 lakh (8.8 million) mobile connections that failed reverification and were flagged as suspicious. The disconnections were based on crowd‑sourced reports submitted through the Chakshu facility of Sanchar Saathi and are part of a broader effort to curb telecom‑facilitated cyber fraud. The Digital Intelligence Platform (DIP) enables information sharing with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, the Securities and Exchange Board of India and other stakeholders.