The Indian government has made a major change to the rules for using messaging apps. Popular apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Snapchat, ShareChat, JioChat, Arattai, and Josh will no longer function without an active SIM card.
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Important news has emerged for millions of users of social media platforms. The Indian government has made a major change to the rules governing the use of messaging apps. Popular apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Snapchat, ShareChat, JioChat, Arattai, and Josh will no longer be able to function without an active SIM card. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has implemented this rule under the Telecommunication Cybersecurity Amendment Rules, 2025.
These platforms will now have to ensure that the user’s SIM card is always linked to the app. Apps will have to implement this within 90 days. A major change has also been made for those using the app from a web browser. Under this, the app will now auto-logout every six hours, and users will have to scan the QR code again to login.
This is why the decision was taken.
According to the Department of Telecommunications, this move aims to address a major flaw in communication apps’ user verification. Currently, most communication apps verify a user’s mobile number only at the time of installation. Afterward, the app continues to function uninterrupted even if the SIM is removed or disabled.
Furthermore, criminals often continue to use these apps even after changing SIM cards while outside India, making it difficult to identify them based on call records, location logs, or telecom data. Persistent SIM-binding maintains traceability between the user, number, and device, potentially reducing spam, fraud, and financial fraud on messaging platforms.
This feature is already implemented in banking apps.
It should be noted that this system is already implemented in UPI and banking apps. Banking and payment apps cannot function without a SIM card. Additionally, these apps continuously verify the SIM card. Even SEBI has considered security measures like linking trading accounts to SIM cards and facial recognition.
