• Government withdraws order to preinstall Sanchar Saathi on new smartphones
• Privacy concerns and industry pushback prompt reversal
• App remains voluntary as officials prepare formal instructions for manufacturers

India has reversed its decision to make the Sanchar Saathi app mandatory on all new smartphones, following strong public and industry concerns around privacy and government overreach. The telecom ministry announced that the anti-theft and cybersecurity app will stay voluntary and will no longer be required as a preinstalled feature.

The move overturns a directive shared with smartphone makers last week that instructed them to preload Sanchar Saathi and prevent users from disabling its features. The mandate quickly sparked criticism, as many believed it would expand state access to user devices without clear legal backing.

In a statement, the ministry said rising trust in Sanchar Saathi made compulsory installation unnecessary. However, smartphone companies are still waiting for an official written order confirming the withdrawal, according to industry sources.

Sanchar Saathi, launched in January 2025, has already been downloaded 14 million times and helps report around 2,000 cyber fraud cases daily. The recent controversy spiked interest further, with 600,000 new user registrations on December 2 alone. Despite earlier government claims that users could delete the app freely, the circulated directive had explicitly stated that its functions 'must not be disabled',creating confusion and fueling public skepticism.

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Digital rights groups welcomed the reversal but said they would wait for a formal legal notification before treating the matter as settled. Sensor Tower data shows the platform had over 3 million monthly active users in November, with web traffic growing more than 49% year-on-year.

Meanwhile, other components of the Sanchar Saathi ecosystem continue to expand. Recommerce platforms must still verify device IMEIs using a central database, and the ministry is testing an API that may allow these companies to share device and customer data directly with the government.