Empowering Citizens Against Online Scams
Scam Se Bacho: DoT and WhatsApp Join Forces to Fight Online Scams: In a move to strengthen India’s digital safety framework, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has partnered with WhatsApp to launch the ‘Scam Se Bacho’ campaign. As digital usage rises across India, so does the risk of online scams, phishing attempts, and fraud messages. This initiative is part of India’s broader cyber safety mission and aims to educate citizens on how to detect and report online scams, especially on widely-used platforms like WhatsApp.
A Strategic Partnership for Digital Safety
The campaign’s primary goal is to increase awareness among mobile users about scam calls and messages. By collaborating with WhatsApp, DoT plans to provide easy-to-understand safety guidelines, empowering users to protect themselves in a rapidly evolving digital environment. With WhatsApp’s massive user base in India, the partnership ensures critical safety information reaches even rural and semi-urban populations.
Training the Trainers: Grassroots Cyber Education
As part of the campaign, train-the-trainer workshops will be conducted for DoT officials, Sanchar Mitras, and Telecom Service Providers (TSPs). These individuals will become the first line of cyber safety educators, helping spread awareness among the public. This method ensures a multiplier effect, where one trained official can inform dozens of citizens in their local areas about fraud prevention.
Boosting the Sanchar Saathi Initiative
The campaign aligns with and enhances the Sanchar Saathi initiative, a citizen-focused platform that includes a web portal and mobile app. Through Sanchar Saathi, users can now , Report suspicious messages or scam calls , Trace and block lost or stolen phones and Manage all active mobile connections in their nameThis initiative makes telecom safety more transparent, accessible, and citizen-driven.
Technology Meets Public Service: Role of DIU
The Digital Intelligence Unit (DIU) of the DoT plays a key role in this effort. By linking data between banks, police, and telecom operators, the DIU ensures that telecom misuse is monitored and acted upon swiftly. This enables timely detection and blocking of SIM cards or numbers used in fraudulent activities, making it harder for scammers to operate undetected.
Multilingual Campaign to Reach All Corners
To ensure every Indian citizen, regardless of language or region, benefits, WhatsApp will roll out educational materials in eight regional languages: Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, and Gujarati. These materials will explain how to verify unknown messages, avoid common fraud traps, and report scams effectively.
STATIC GK SNAPSHOT
Scam Se Bacho: DoT and WhatsApp Join Forces to Fight Online Scams:
| Aspect | Details |
| Campaign Name | Scam Se Bacho |
| Launched By | Department of Telecommunications (DoT) & WhatsApp |
| Associated Initiative | Sanchar Saathi |
| Key Digital Body | Digital Intelligence Unit (DIU) |
| Training Target Audience | DoT officials, Sanchar Mitras, Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) |
| Key Features | Fraud reporting, lost phone tracing, mobile number management |
| Regional Languages Used | Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati |
| Campaign Focus | Cyber fraud awareness, multilingual education, grassroots training |
| Goal | Protect citizens from online scams and ensure digital safety |
