New Delhi: India’s largest telecom operators recorded their highest volume of spam complaints in 2025, with over 1.17 million cases against Bharti Airtel and over 1.07 million cases against Reliance Jio, indicating continued growth in unsolicited commercial calls and messages.
The Department of Telecommunications presented the information in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. (Representative photo)Data tabled in the Lok Sabha by the Department of Telecommunications on Wednesday showed that complaints against unregistered telemarketers (UTMs) have risen steadily over the past five years, nearly tripling since 2021. Total complaints increased from about 0.85 million in 2021 to more than 2.5 million in 2025.
According to McAfee’s 2026 State of the Scamverse report released on Wednesday, Indians receive an average of 13 scam communications every day across text messages, social media, emails, phone calls and even malicious QR codes.
Also read: Indians spend 102 hours a year anticipating scam messages, McAfee found
Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar on Wednesday said that among telecom operators, Airtel has recorded the highest volume every year, with complaints increasing from 0.37 million in 2021 to around 1.17 million in 2025. Reliance Jio had a sharper jump during the same period. Complaints rose from 21 million to over 21 million during the same period. Vodafone Idea Limited also reported continued growth, touching 0.27 million complaints in 2025. Comparatively, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) account for a very small share of complaints.
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The government said telecom operators have repeatedly issued warnings against criminals, limiting the number of calls they can make and disconnecting numbers. Following a directive from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), around 1.88 million numbers linked to unregistered telemarketers were disconnected in a major enforcement drive. TRAI has also fined it ₹153.8 crore to telecom companies for not handling spam complaints properly.
More than 0.3 million businesses and 21,000 telemarketers have been asked to register on a digital platform to track and verify their messages. For consumers, the regulator said it made it easier to block or report spam.
Also read:Display ‘International Calls’ for calls from abroad to prevent scams: Telex to DoT
Users can register their preference or report complaints on the Do Not Disturb app, their telecom provider’s app or website, by sending an SMS or calling 1909 or through the government’s Sanchar Sathi portal. Promotional calls should come from special numbers starting with 140 and financial services calls from the 1600 series, so that people can recognize them more easily.
The system now automatically blocks large volumes of unwanted communications, the government claims. In December 2025, an average of more than 75 million calls and SMS were blocked per day based on customer preferences, while AI tools flagged more than 310 million calls and messages per day as suspected spam.
In December 2025, TRAI started a pilot project with the Reserve Bank of India under which a small group of mobile users received SMS alerts from the short code 127000 to review and manage their promotional messaging permissions to banks. Messages allow customers to view, change or withdraw their consent through a secure link. The government plans to expand the trial to sectors other than banking in the near future.
