എസ് ടി ഡിയുടെ അന്ത്യം; അടുത്ത മാര്‍ച്ചോടെ ഇന്ത്യ റോമിംഗ് ഫ്രീ

അടുത്ത മാര്‍ച്ചോടെ ഇന്ത്യ റോമിംഗ് ഫ്രീ രാജ്യമായി മാറും. 2013 ല്‍ റോമിംഗ് പൂര്‍ണമായും ഒഴിവാക്കുമെന്ന് കേന്ദ്രസര്‍ക്കാര്‍ നേരത്തെ പ്രഖ്യാപിച്ചിരുന്നു. മൂന്നു മാസത്തിനകം ഇത് നടപ്പാക്കാന്‍ ടെലികോം വകുപ്പ്‌ മൊബൈല്‍ കമ്പനികള്‍ക്ക് നിര്‍ദ്ദേശം നല്‍കിക്കഴിഞ്ഞു. ഇതോടെ ഇന്ത്യയില്‍ എവിടെനിന്നു വിളിച്ചാലും മൊബൈല്‍ നിരക്കില്‍ മാറ്റമുണ്ടാവില്ല. മാത്രമല്ല ഇന്‍കമിംഗ് കോളുകള്‍ സൗജന്യമായിരിക്കും. അതെ സമയം ഈ തീരുമാനം മൊബൈല്‍ കമ്പനികളുടെ കടുത്ത എതിര്‍പ്പിനെ മറി കടന്നാണ് ടെലികോം മന്ത്രാലയം എടുത്തിട്ടുള്ളത്. ഈ തീരുമാനം കൊണ്ട് തങ്ങളുടെ വരുമാനത്തില്‍ 10% കുറവുണ്ടാകുമെന്ന് മൊബൈല്‍ കമ്പനികള്‍ ഭയക്കുന്നു. വോഡഫോണും എയര്‍ടെലും ഈ തീരുമാനത്തിനെതിരെ മുന്‍പ്‌ രംഗത്ത് വന്നിരുന്നു.

റോമിങ് ഫ്രീയാകുന്നതോടെ ‘എസ്ടിഡി’ യുടെ അന്ത്യം ആകും സംഭവിക്കുക. ഇന്ത്യ ഒട്ടാകെ പിന്നീട് ഒറ്റ താരിഫാകും ഉണ്ടാവുക. അന്യസംസ്ഥാനങ്ങളില്‍ ജോലിചെയ്യുന്നവര്‍ക്കും കേരളത്തിലെ അന്യസംസ്ഥാന തൊഴിലാളികള്‍ക്കും ബിസനസുകാര്‍ക്കും റോമിംഗ് ഫ്രീ ആക്കാനുള്ള തീരുമാനം അനുഗ്രഹമാകും.
അതെ സമയം ചില ദോഷങ്ങളും ഈ തീരുമാനം കൊണ്ട് ഉണ്ടാവാന്‍ സാധ്യതയുണ്ട്. മൊബൈല്‍ കമ്പനികളുടെ വരുമാന നഷ്ടം തടയാന്‍ വേണ്ടി മൊബൈല്‍ നിരക്കുകള്‍ കുറച്ചു ആണെങ്കിലും വര്‍ധിപ്പിക്കാന്‍ സാധ്യതയുണ്ട്. ഇതോടെ റോമിങ് ഒഴിവാകുമ്പോള്‍ വര്‍ദ്ധിപ്പിച്ച കോള്‍ നിരക്കുകളാവും ഉപഭോക്താക്കളെ കാത്തിരിയ്ക്കുന്നത്. രാജ്യത്ത് എവിടെയാണ് ഏറ്റവും കുറവ് കോള്‍ ചാര്‍ജ്ജ് എന്ന് നോക്കി ഉപഭോക്താക്കള്‍ സിം കാര്‍ഡ് വാങ്ങുമെന്നും കമ്പനികള്‍ക്ക് ആശങ്കയുണ്ട്. ഇപ്പോള്‍ പല സംസ്ഥാനങ്ങളിലും പല നിരക്കുകളാണ് ഈടാക്കുന്നത്. പുതിയ സംവിധാനം വരുന്നതോടെ ഇതെല്ലാം കീഴ്‌മേല്‍ മറിയുമെന്നും ടെലികോം കമ്പനികള്‍ ഭയക്കുന്നു.
2013 മാര്‍ച്ച് മുതല്‍ ‘മൊബൈല്‍ നമ്പര്‍ പോര്‍ട്ടബിലിറ്റി’ സേവനം സര്‍ക്കിളിന് പുറത്തേക്ക് വ്യാപിപ്പിക്കാനും മന്ത്രാലയം നിര്‍ദേശം നല്‍കിയിടുണ്ട്. ഇതോടെ ഒരു മൊബൈല്‍ ഉപഭോക്താവിന് അന്യ സംസ്ഥാനത്തെ മൊബൈല്‍ സര്‍ക്കിളുകളിലും നമ്പര്‍ പോര്‍ട്ടബിലിറ്റി സേവനം പ്രയോജനപ്പെടുത്താന്‍ സാധിയ്ക്കും.

How to manage frauds that go mobile?

Since the release of the original iPhone, one billion smartphone activations and 700 million downloads ofAngry Birds later, mobile devices have proliferated.

Financial service organizations are tapping into this market by moving products and services to mobiles, delivering specialized small-screen adaptations for browsing, and developing apps that supply mobile functionality and services that enable customers anywhere-anytime access to account information.

Mobile banking alone is expected to grow to nearly 900 million users by 2015. 

While a majority of fraud attempts are still targeted at users in the online channel, as banking services go mobile, so are the attacks that target banking customers. Here are some of the most common attack methods being used by cyber-criminals to target mobile banking users today.

Smishing, or SMS phishing, sends a text message to a user's mobile phone in an attempt to get her to divulge personal information. As is the case with phishing, a smishing attack usually has a call to action for the intended victim that requires an immediate response.

Smishing has become easier to do and is becoming an attractive alternative with higher success compared tophishing as consumers are not conditioned to receiving spam on their mobile phone, so are more likely to believe the communication is legitimate.

Furthermore, whereas a majority of phishing emails get stopped by spam filters and often never reach their intended targets, there is no mainstream mechanism for weeding out 'spam' text messages.

Some mobile malware is programmed to conduct man-in-the-middle attacks, capable of forwarding SMS messages with a user's Mobile Transaction Numbers (mTANs) to an attacker. These mTANs are often used as a way for banking customers to confirm that they initiated a transaction.

By intercepting the code, cyber-criminals can initiate a transaction and then use the unique code to verify the transaction as though they were the legitimate user. Examples of man-in-the-mobile threats have been most commonly found within well known banking Trojans such as Zeus and SpyEye.

Rogue applications are becoming plentiful in most online app stores. Today, Android is the most common platform being exploited by cyber-criminals. Recently, a new Android Trojan was discovered that displays a video downloaded from the net — only if some sensitive information is previously sent to a remote server.

Today, RSA's Anti-Fraud Command Center is witnessing an average of about 3 per cent of all fraudulent transactions originating in mobile channels or devices. While this hardly compares to the percentage of fraud in the online channel, mobile threats continue to emerge and, in time, that number will rise.

Here are some expected mobile threats and developments in the coming year.

Smishing will continue to increase. Many financial institutions have been successful in getting standard phishing attacks under control. However, smishing presents a whole new series of challenges.

Phone flooding services increase in popularity. Out-of-band authentication via SMS or phone call is being used across the financial industry as a step-up authentication method for high-risk transactions.

To overcome this additional security, cyber-criminals flood an intended victim's phone with calls, ultimately rendering the phone useless and interfering with bank's attempt to alert a user to a high risk transaction.

Banking Trojans continue to be developed for mobiles. There have been several attempts at coding SpyEye variants for mobile platforms (mainly Android). These custom codes are designed to attempt intercepting SMS codes sent during transaction authentication by forwarding the content of the text message to the attacker's server.

The code is still young and its presence on mobile phones is limited. However, cyber-criminals are focusing their efforts on the mobile platform.

New Trojan plug-ins are targeting the mobile phone. Many banking Trojans available for sale in the black market offer plug-ins that enable HTML injection. When an infected user attempts to access her online bankingsite, the Trojan automatically injects extra fields in the login page. Most often, the extra details cyber-criminals attempt to obtain are credit card numbers and ATM PIN codes.

Portable nature of mobile devices — and information that is stored or accessed on them — is what makes them so vulnerable (when was the last time you misplaced your desktop?).

Also, if a mobile device is lost or stolen, it is typical for consumers to call their mobile provider to report it, but they don't usually call their bank to report it. If the user engages in mobile banking, all financial information stored on the device could be easily accessed.

Attacks are evolving in the mobile channel and as the popularity of mobile banking grows, financial institutions are challenged with how to translate the success they have had in managing fraud risk in the online channel and applying those same best practices to the mobile channel.

Understanding how to secure your customers against mobile attacks is the first step in turning the tide on fraud — and taking full advantage of the opportunities that this channel presents. 

Source : http://economictimes.indiatimes.com
Via : http://aipeup3bbsr.blogspot.in/

Online Mobile Recharge

We can recharge thro online with the help of Internet banking  / ATM card facility

BSNL  : http://portal.bsnl.in/rc/aspxfiles/login.aspx

AIRTEL : https://pay.airtel.com/PrepaidOnlineRecharge/mobileRecharge.jsp

AIRCEL :   https://epayment.aircel.com/online-recharge/


VODAFONE : http://www.paytm.com/vodafone-prepaid-mobile-online-recharge.htm

IDEA : http://www.paytm.com/idea-prepaid-mobile-online-recharge.htm

Prepaid mobile numbers to lose ISD facility soon

NEW DELHI: Telecom regulator Trai has asked telecom companies to de-activate the international calling facility in pre-paid numbers and restore it only after a subscriber gives his explicit consent to avail this facility. 

"Inform all pre-paid subscribers having ISD facility, through SMS, within 10 days of the date of issue of this direction, thatISD facility of the subscribers shall be discontinued after sixty days," Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) said in a directive to telcos. 

"If such subscribers want to continue with ISD facility, they should give their explicit consent for availing such facility within 60 days of the receipt of the SMS," it added. 

Trai has issued this directive following complaints from consumers about missed calls from international telephone numbers which are often premium numbers charging high tariff, prompting the consumers to make call to such numbers.

Trai said it has also been receiving complaints from consumers about receiving calls and SMSes from international numbers informing them about winning of prizes or lottery and prompting consumers to call a particular number to claim the prize or lottery money. 

"These numbers are international numbers, which are often premium numbers charging higher tariffs. By responding to such calls/SMS the consumers have to pay unintended charges," Trai said. 

The regulator has asked telecom operators to inform subscribers through SMS, within 10 days of the direction, that pre-paid cellular mobile telephone service consumers need not respond to all missed calls from unknown international numbers or calls about winning prizes or lottery.

Trai has asked telecom service providers to send such SMS to consumers every six months and provide easy and transparent opt-in and opt-out facility to the consumers of the cellular mobile telephone service for activation or deactivation of ISD facility. 

Source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Radiation from Mobile Towers

Department of Telecommunications had adopted the international EMF norms in the year 2008 in respect of mobile towers prescribed by International Commission on non Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). The ICNIRP guidelines are being followed by a number of countries in the world. 

Many Countries, mostly developed Countries have developed their own health based precautionary guidelines where the exposure limit of these radiations is very low. 

As per the recommendations of Inter Ministerial Committee on EMF Radiation, the radio frequency emission level exposure limits have been revised to 1/10th of the existing prescribed base station emission level which will be effective from 01.09.2012. 

This information was given by the Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today. 

Source : PIB, August 14, 2012

To stop Commercial Communication in you Mobile

Here i'm sharing what i have read in TRAI website. As so many of us may want to Receive some sms from our favorite websites, coaching centres, job notifications etc. but not the disturbing telemarketing calls. 

Customers (landline and mobile) who do not want to receive commercial communications can dial or SMS to 1909 (toll free) and register in either of the two categories:

1.Fully Blocked Category- stoppage of all commercial Calls/SMS

2.Partially Blocked Category- stoppage of all commercial Calls/SMS except SMS from one of the opted preferences

For registering option using SMS, for 'fully blocked category', write "START 0" and send it to 1909. For 'partially blocked category', send SMS 'START' with one or multiple options from the list of seven categories.

There are at present 7 preferences to choose:

1.Banking/Insurance/Financial Products/Credit Cards

2.Real Estate

3.Education

4.Health

5.Consumer goods and automobiles

6.Communication/Broadcasting/Entertainment/IT

7.Tourism.

For example: To receive messages relating to only Health products, then send SMS "START 4" to 1909. Similarly, for receiving messages relating to Real Estate and Education, send SMS "START 2,3" to 1909.

On successful registration, customer will receive an SMS confirming exercised options and a Unique Registration Number within 24 hrs. The registration will be effective within 7 days of placing the request with the service provider. The customers can check the status of their registration by clicking on "Customer Registration Status" in TRAI website.

Customer can also change the preferences after 7 days of registration or the last change of preference.

If customer receives UCC even after 7 days of registration, he can register a complaint with his service provider within 3 days of receipt of such UCC by dialing or sending SMS to 1909. Customers will have to provide the telephone number or header of the message from where the call or message has been received, short description of such call or message along with the date and time.

For complaint through SMS, customer has to send SMS "COMP TEL NO XXXXXXXXXX;dd/mm/yy;Time in hh:mm; short description of Unsolicited Commercial Communication" to 1909. Where XXXXXXXXXX - is the telephone number or header of the SMS, from which the UCC has originated. 

Service Provider will take action on complaint and inform the complainant within 7 days of lodging of complaint. Customers may check registration status of his complaint through the link "UCC Complaint Registration Status" in TRAI wesite. 

Customers not registered with NCPR can also identify the commercial calls because they will all come from numbers starting with '140'. This is a series specially earmarked for telemarketers. 

Also, in order to control the possibility of SMS packages (those allow a very large number of SMS per day) to be used by the telemarketers for sending large number of SMSs from a normal telephone number, a limit of 100 SMS per day per SIM has been laid down under these regulations except on blackout days.

Further, all commercial calls or SMS except the transactional SMSs will be sent to the customers only between 9 AM and 9 PM.

Click Here to Go to TRAI wesite

Register/ deregister through IVR/ SMS

You can register for the fully blocked category in which no commercial call or SMS will be allowed or for the partially blocked category where u will not receive any commercial call but will receive SMS on categorie(s) that you opt for.

THROUGH IVR
Call 1909 (toll free) and select preference required for activation/deactivation (Full DND/Partial DND)

TO REGISTER THROUGH SMS

·         To opt for the fully blocked category, send SMS “START 0” to1909 .

·         To opt for the partially blocked category, send SMS “Start

For e.g. “START 1” for receiving SMS relating to Banking / Insurance / Financial Products /Credit cards·
If u want to choose more than 1 category send START 1,2 to1909
1. Banking / Insurance / Financial Products /Credit cards 2. Real Estate 3. Education 4. Health 5. Consumer goods and automobiles 6. Communication / Broadcasting / Entertainment / IT 7. Tourism and Leisure

TO DE- REGISTER THROUGH SMS

·         for the fully blocked category, send SMS “STOP 0” to 1909.

Note:Your request for registration on the NATIONAL DO NOT CALL REGISTRY will be given effect to in 7 days from the date of request

Now Send More Than 200 SMS Per day, Thank you Delhi High Court!

Good news for all the SMS fans or Heavy SMS Users! Delhi High Court today ordered the withdrawal of 200 SMS per day cap for personal communication while upholds ban on unsolicited or marketing SMSes.

The Court order comes in response for the petition challenging the TRAI’s order which was filed by Mr. Anil Kumar, secretary of an NGO . The petition also alleged that the checks and measures under the Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations 2010, which was already enough to curb the menace of unsolicited SMS’s and the 200 SMS cap that has been imposed in a non-transparent manner without any priorconsultation with the mobile service providers.

On 27th September 2011, TRAI directed all Access Providers (GSM and CDMA Mobile service operators) to set a cap of 100 SMSs per day per users and last year in November TRAI had raised the SMS limit upto 200 from the earlier limit of 100 SMS per day.

The court said this restriction, in the present from (200 SMS per day) without any provision of proper regulation in our view, offends the fundamental rights of the users enshrined under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.

Please Note:- This is a court order and implementation of the same would be depend on telecom watchdog TRAI so one has to wait and see when the implementation take place. We will update you as it happens.

Source : http://telecomtalk.info/

Beware of missed call to check SIM cloning

Next time if you get a missed call starting with +92; #90 or #09, don't show the courtesy of calling back because chances are it would lead to your SIM card being cloned. The telecom service providers are now issuing alerts to subscribers -particularly about the series mentioned above as the moment one press the call button after dialing the above number, someone at the other end will get your phone and SIM card cloned.

According to reports, more than one lakh subscribers have fallen prey to this new telecom terror attack as the frequency of such calls continues to grow. Intelligence agencies have reportedly confirmed to the service providers particularly in UP West telecom division that such a racket is not only under way but the menace is growing fast. "We are sure there must be some more similar combinations that the miscreants are using to clone the handsets and all the information stored in them," an intelligence officer told TOI.

Source:The Economic Times

5 Quick Tips to Longer Batter Life

Quick tips to handle battery problems in your smart phones.

If you own a mobile phone then you’ve probably been in a situation where your mobile phone dies from a lack of battery charge. This can be rather frustrating - especially if you are in a place where you are unable to charge your battery. There are some measures you can take when using your mobile device that can help preserve your battery power.

1) Avoid Keeping the phone in Vibration Mode:

The method of notification for phone calls can use a significant amount of battery power. This is mainly true for when you set your mobile phone to vibrate. Vibrating will use more power than just having the phone ring. An even larger battery drain is when your phone is set to both vibrate and ring. If you are using this setting, go for the ring-only option as it will use less battery power.

2) Avoid enabling multiple apps in the background:

Another serious battery drain is when you are using multiple apps at one time. Maybe times even though you are not using a particular app, you didn’t close it when you finished. Therefore, it is running in the background sucking power from your battery. 

3) Disable Push to Notification Apps:

Many apps issue what are known as push notifications. These messages instantly tell you if you have new messages, tweets, etc. While they might be helpful, they do use a significant amount of your battery’s power. See if you wait and just check your information manually. If so, then turning off push notifications would be a good move towards your goal of battery preservation.

4) Don't Let the Battery Die - Charge Frequently:

In order to make your battery last longer, do not allow it to die between charging. It is best to charge your phone more frequently. By charging it more often for shorter time frames, you are actually increasing the life of the lithium-ion battery used in the phone. Always charge your phone before it dies. 

5) Use of Black Background:

It is recommended that using a black screen on AMOLED screens consumes less battery charge. Using a black theme is highly recommended in that case. Set a black background in the browser settings as well.

Courtesy : satirur.blogspot.in

Safety Of Mobile Phones

Remember to ::
	Keep your phone out of sight in your pocket or handbag when not in use
	Use your phone's security lock code, if it has one
	Install a tracer software if it is available in the market.
	Record details of your IMEI number or Electronic Serial Number (ESN) and consider separate insurance
	You can obtain IMEI number by typing *#06# (star hash 06 hash) into your mobile phone and it will display a 15 digit number
	Feed your address and alternative number in welcome message of your mobile phone. If it is found, you can be contacted at least.
	Copy the sensitive data, contact details and pictures from mobile phone to your personal computer.
	Report a lost or stolen phone to the police immediately
	Inform your service provider if your phone is stolen or lost

Don't
	Attract attention to your phone when you are carrying or using it in the street
	Leave your phone in an unattended car, on your table, cash counters, wash basins.
	Give to strangers who just make a call as their phone is discharged or there is no balance in the mobile phone.

Buying a Second Hand Mobile
Please follow the checklist below...
	Insist on bill with IMEI written on it.
	If you find a stolen mobile inform Police
	If the IMEI sticker is tampered or erased in the battery slot do not buy the phone

Source : http://haveripolice.blogspot.in/

Studies Cannot Definitely Conclude Cancer and Mobile Radiation

There is massive public outcry over health hazards of cellular tower radiation in all major cities. People across the country have lot of confusion and misconception about radiations, and they are suspecting them for increasing cancer risk.

After a string of street protests stalled life over cellular towers in the past few weeks in jaipur, experts gathered to clear the doubts around cell tower radiations.

Experts speak on the issue on a scientific session held on: ‘Cellular Towers & Radiation- What’s true and whats not.

Dr. Ajay Kumar the sole Indian member at the World Medical Council a representative body of doctors across countries cited “There is no conclusive scientific fact which can directly link cellular tower radiation with cancer. There are various other environmental risk factors also which could be responsible for increasing cases of cancer and authorities should look into it.”

According to World Health Organization considering the very low exposure levels and research result collected to date there is no convincing scientific evidence that the week radio frequency signals from base stations and wireless network cause adverse health effects.

Dr Subir Ganguly, head of radiotherapy, NRS medical college and hospital, kolkata., said it is very important to have a conclusive scientific proof on the issue.This calls for immediate research to find out links, if any, between cellular tower radiations and increasing incidences of cancer.

The Cellular Operation Association of India conducted a study last year, on electromagnetic radiation from cell towers, which brought the interesting findings that cellular radiation is not hazardous.

The study conducted by IIT-Madras and Thiagarajar College, Madurai, found that cell phone tower radiation at 96 locations in Mumbai was within the permissible level of 4,500 mW/sq m.

The study, commissioned by COAI in association with United Telecom Providers of India, carried out to measure emission from 300 locations in Mumbai, Delhi and Pune, found the radiation levels from the cellular base stations were much below the compliance limit of International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protections (ICNIRP) standards.

Experts unanimously asserted on the importance of clearing all the doubts involving mobile tower radiation. If these radiations are really responsible for any diseases, then it is necessary to find proper measures to handle them or else procedures should be initiated to clear doubts.

Eminent doctors from all walks of life i.e. Cardiology, Radiology and Oncology converged for the workshop to participate in rigorous, expert-level discussions on the issue of cellular tower radiation and related health risks.

Courtesy : http://telecomtalk.info/

How to Stop / Start Receiving Free SMS

If you want daily free SMS alerts from http://rmssa.blogspot.in/

Simply send SMS,  Type  ON  RMS SA    to   9446323744

How to Stop receiving Bulk SMS: 

Customers (landline and mobile) who do not want to receive commercial communications can dial or SMS to 1909 (toll free) and register in either of the two categories:
Fully Blocked Category- stoppage of all commercial Calls/SMS 
Partially Blocked Category- stoppage of all commercial Calls/SMS except SMS from one of the opted preferences 

For registering option using SMS, for 'fully blocked category', 
Type "START 0" and send it to 1909. 

For 'partially blocked category', 
Type 'START' with one or multiple options from the list of seven categories. 
There are at present 7 preferences to choose from- 
Banking/Insurance/Financial Products/Credit Cards-1, 
Real Estate-2, 
Education-3, 
Health-4, 
Consumer goods and automobiles-5, 
Communication/Broadcasting/Entertainment/IT-6, 
Tourism-7.

For example: To receive messages relating to only Health products, then send SMS "START 4" to 1909. Similarly, for receiving messages relating to Real Estate and Education, send SMS "START 2,3" to 1909.


To get free SMS :  Call 1909 for cancellation of DND  or   send the sms STOP DND  to 1909

For more information: visit link : http://www.nccptrai.gov.in/nccpregistry/

To check status of your enrollment for DND, kindly click here.

Effect of Mobile Phones on Humans

The Minister of State for Communications & Information Technology Shri Milind Deora informed the Rajya Sabha today in a written reply that the Indian Council of Medical research (ICMR) has initiated a study in Delhi & NCR to study the adverse effects of radio frequency radiation emitted from Cell Phones.

Under this study, efforts are going on to examine whether use of cell phone creates risk of neurological, cardio-logical, cancer, ENT and reproductive disorders. The efforts are also going on to measure Specific Absorption Rate (SAR), power density wavelength and frequency of Radio Frequency Radiation emitted from various types of cell phones & cell phone towers under study. 

ICMR had supported an animal study (2005-08) titled “Microwave radiations effects on reproductive systems of male rats” under Prof. J. Behari, School of Environmental Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. 

Source :PIB

TRAI Launches Telecom Consumers Complaint Monitoring System

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India ( TRAI) today launched a facility to monitor complaints from telecom consumers.

 Called Telecom Consumers Complaint Monitoring System (TCCMS) portal www.tccms.gov.in  , it would facilitate the telecom consumers  in locating the “Consumer Care Number”, “General Information Number” and contact details of the complaint centre and Appellate Authority of their service provider. The portal would also help access the website of their service provider’s complaint monitoring portal to track the current status of their complaints or appeals lodged with their service provider complaint centre or Appellate Authority.

This portal will also help TRAI in monitoring the status of redressal of complaints lodged by the consumers with the service providers.  It is felt that this portal will help enhance the effectiveness of the grievance redressalmechanism.

Source : PIB dtd 30/04/2012

Radiation Tags for Cell Phones

All cell-phones would soon be carrying radiation tags. All the indigenous manufacturers have been instructed to display Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) value on the mobile handsets on or before 1st September 2012. 

Giving details in Rajya Sabha on Friday, the Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Sh Milind Deora said the Department of Telecommunications has adopted SAR (Specific Absorption Rate) level for mobile handsets as 1.6 Watt/Kg, averaged over a mass of 1 gram of human tissue. On 25th January 2012, all the indigenous manufacturers have been instructed to make necessary changes in the design, software and packaging in compliance with these instructions by 01.09.2012. 

Shri Deora said, to regulate indigenous as well as imported mobile phones, Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) has been requested to frame standards for all mobile phones under the BIS Act 1986. All cell phone handsets sold in the marked in India will comply with relevant Bureau of Indian Standard’s (BIS) benchmark. 

BK/AT/PM 
(Release ID :82777)


Source : PIB dtd 30/04/2012

SC sets up committee on norms for issuing SIM Cards

Supreme Court on Friday set up a joint expert panel to recommend the procedure for the telecom firms for properly identifying the customers before issuing SIM cards to them

The Supreme Court on Friday set up a joint expert panel to recommend the procedure for the telecom firms for properly identifying the customers before issuing SIM cards to them.

A bench of Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia said the panel comprising officials of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) will submit its report to the government within three months.

The bench passed the order on a plea by one Avishek Goenka seeking its direction to the government to frame guidelines for telecom firms for issuing SIM cards.

He further alleged the verification norms were necessary in view of the recent probe in terror attacks pointing towards the use of mobile phones the connections for which were given on the basis of fake documents.

He had pointed out that both in Mumbai and Delhi blasts, the probe had reached to the conclusion that the cellular phones used by the accused were operating with SIM cards, secured on the basis of bogus documents.

Source : thehindu.com dtd 27/04/2012

Trai: One paisa per second plan mandatory

NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has asked all service providers to ensure that they offer their customers atariff plan of one paisa per second along with other offerings.

The regulator in a tariff amendment order said it had become "mandatory" for service providers to offer in each service area at least one tariff plan each for both postpaid and prepaid subscriber with a uniform pulse rate of 'one second'.

"The service providers will be at liberty to offer alternative tariff plans with any pulse rate within the overall ceiling of 25 tariff plans," TRAI said in a statement.

The rates for premium rate services currently levied by service providers are substantially higher as compared to the normal tariff applicable for a two-way communication due to the fact that the charges levied also include the price for content.

Keeping in view the fact that calls and SMS made for participating in competition and voting hardly contain any content, TRAI's Telecommunication Tariff (Fifty First Amendment) Order 2012 also mandated that tariff for such calls and SMS shall not exceed four times of the applicable local call or SMS charges.

The amendment also provides flexibility to service providers to applyrevision in international long distance tariff uniformly for new as well as existing subscribers.

TRAI had issued a consultation paper in October last year on "Certain issues relating to Telecom Tariff" seeking views of stakeholders.

Most of the operators opposed when asked if one standard plan for all service providers particularly for a prepaid subscriber would be relevant in the present scenario of Indian telecom market.

The regulator has also retained the existing cap of 25 tariff plans that can be offered by access service providers including post-paid and pre-paid.

Source -TOI

Soon, mobile phones to be turned into credit cards

LONDON: Under a payment system unveiled any mobile phone can be turned into a 'tap and go' credit card. 

Advocates of the technology argue it could mean the end of small cash payments within five to 10 years. 

The system, which can be used to make purchases up to 15 pounds, involves sticking asmart card or PayTag - about a third of the size of a normal credit card - to the back of ahandset. 

To make a payment, the phone is tapped on a specially adapted till. The tag, which contains a microchip, communicates with the till terminal via an antenna to confirm the credit card account of the customer and authorise a payment without the need to enter a PIN. 

The system is being launched by Barclaycard, which says it comes with 100 per cent fraud protection, but is likely to be adopted by other major banks. 

Previously, only a few hi-tech handsets could be used for tap and go payments, but the new tag means any phone could be. 

An increasing number of retailers offer or are introducing tap and go tills, including Waitrose,McDonald's, Boots and Tesco. By the end of this year, London buses will also accept these so-called contactless payments. 

"More than half of us say that the item we're most lost without is our mobile phone, so we're giving people the option of using them to make easy, convenient, everyday payments," the Daily Mail quoted David Chan, chief executive of Barclaycard Consumer Europe as saying.

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com