The Department of Telecom’s SIM-binding directive may inconvenience consumers using messaging apps like WhatsApp and increase costs for small and medium businesses, a survey by the Asia Center has expressed concern. According to this study, this system is likely to be of limited help in preventing cyber fraud. SIM-binding means that the SIM card of the mobile number registered with the messaging app account must be inserted into the respective mobile phone and kept active. The purpose of this is to ensure that the person using the app has control over the mobile number and SIM card.
‘Rethinking India’s SIM-Binding Order
The study, titled ‘Rethinking India’s SIM-Binding Mandate: An Empirical Assessment’, is based on a survey of 2,033 consumers in 18 Indian cities and 353 businesses in 17 cities. In November 2025, the Department of Telecommunications (DOT) directed Internet-based messaging app companies to link user accounts to their registered SIM cards. The initial directive provided for automatic termination of web app sessions every six hours. It was later amended to allow session termination at risk.
Problems encountered while abroad
According to the survey, SIM-binding, i.e. the requirement to keep the SIM card associated with the messaging app account active in the respective mobile phone, can pose a problem for people, especially while traveling abroad. Only 33 percent of those surveyed use the roaming features on Indian SIM cards. Whereas, 67.1 percent use a local SIM card, Wi-Fi only or another SIM card abroad. So, if the messaging service stops working due to deactivation or removal of the registered Indian SIM card from the mobile phone, people may face problems.
97 percent people have problems
97.7 percent of those surveyed said they would find it difficult to automatically log out of an app while using it on another device. Similarly, 97 percent said it would be difficult to log in repeatedly with an Indian SIM card while traveling. The study says that if the ‘SIM-binding’ rule restricts the use of messaging apps on another device, business operations may be affected. Nearly 78 percent of businesses surveyed agreed that such restrictions would affect their operations to some extent.