DoT warns IMEI tampering can mean three years in jail

NEW DELHI: The Department of Telecommunications, through a Press Information Bureau research note dated 23 September 2026, has again warned that tampering with a phone's International Mobile Equipment Identity number is unlawful and can draw jail time of up to three years, a fine of up to Rs 50 lakh, or both.

The note ties the warning to India's wireless subscriber base of 1,204.01 million in July 2026 and to the wider risk that altered device identities complicate law enforcement, consumer protection and network security.

Under the Telecommunications Act, 2023, Section 42(3)(c) prohibits tampering with telecommunication identifiers. Section 42(3)(e) covers obtaining SIMs or identifiers through fraud or impersonation. Abetment attracts the same punishment under Section 42(6). Such offences are described as cognizable and non-bailable under Section 42(7).

Device Setu registration duties

Manufacturers must register IMEIs of applicable telecom devices made in India on the Device Setu–Indian Counterfeited Device Restriction portal before first sale, testing or research use. Importers face the same registration duty before bringing devices into India for sale, testing or research. Brand owners must link brands to GSMA Type Allocation Codes on the portal and ensure devices carry authentic IMEIs.

Resellers and used-phone dealers are told to verify IMEIs against the government's tampered and blacklisted device database, for a fee per check, before completing sales. Selling configurable or tampered IMEI hardware can attract action. The IMEI itself is a 15-digit identifier; the first eight digits form the TAC that identifies the model type under GSMA allocation.

What citizens are asked to do

DoT advises people not to use SIM boxes or other gear with configurable IMEIs, not to obtain SIMs through fake documents, not to hand over SIMs obtained in their name for misuse, and not to alter calling-line identity through apps or websites.

Buyers should stick to authorised sellers, dial *#06# to view the IMEI, and use the Sanchar Saathi portal or app — or SMS KYM followed by the 15-digit IMEI to 14422 — to verify devices. Repairs should go to authorised centres.

If a handset is stolen, the note restates the Sanchar Saathi CEIR path: police complaint, duplicate SIM, then portal blocking after the reissued SIM's initial 24-hour SMS restriction window under TRAI rules, because OTP verification needs SMS. The 23 September document is an awareness and compliance brief rather than a new Act; the penalties cited already sit in the 2023 law.

IMEI integrity sits beside SIM-box fraud and fake KYC in DoT's recent public messaging. The 23 September note does not change the statutory ceiling already set in the Telecommunications Act, 2023; it restates duties for every layer of the device chain and points citizens to Sanchar Saathi as the verification and blocking front door.

Retailers who skip paid database checks on used handsets take on clearer enforcement risk under the framing in the PIB note. Consumers who buy from grey-market sellers without verifying *#06# against Sanchar Saathi remain the weakest link the document is trying to close.