SMS and UPI services will stop for 24 hours as soon as SIM is changed, know the new rule to protect from fraud: – ..

News India Live, Digital Desk: In the digital age, mobile number is the key to our bank and social media accounts. Fraudsters often empty your bank account by getting a fake SIM issued in your name. To thwart this ‘SIM swap’ attack, the government has made this ‘waiting period’ mandatory.

What are the new rules? (Key Regulations)

24 hour SMS ban: After changing the SIM or getting a new SIM, neither will you receive any incoming SMS nor will you be able to send any outgoing SMS for the first 24 hours.

Ban on OTP and banking: Since SMS will remain closed, you will have to contact the bank. otp (One-Time Password) will not be received. This means that you will not be able to do net banking, online shopping or transfer any funds for 24 hours.

UPI and Digital Wallet: After changing the SIM, apps like Google Pay, PhonePe and Paytm require SMS verification to re-link. Due to new rules you will be able to stay within 24 hours UPI Will not be able to do transactions.

Strict monitoring of KYC: Now digital KYC and fingerprint/Aadhaar verification is mandatory for SIM replacement. Also, now only a maximum of 9 SIMs can be placed on one ID.

New rule of WhatsApp and ‘SIM Binding’ (Effective March 1, 2026)

From 1st March 2026 WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal ‘SIM binding’ has been made mandatory for apps like:

Continuous Verification: Now these apps will check every 6 hours whether your registered SIM card is present in the phone or not.

App stops when SIM is removed: If you remove or replace the SIM card from your phone, your messaging app will stop working immediately.

Web/Desktop Logout: WhatsApp Web and desktop versions will now automatically log out every 6 hours. To activate it again, you will have to scan with the same phone in which the SIM is inserted.

Why are these rules important to you?

This ’24 hour gap’ has been kept so that if a fraudster has fraudulently removed your SIM, then you get to know about it. As soon as your original SIM is deactivated, you will have time to reactivate it or inform the bank. As long as the hacker starts using your number, his SMS service will remain blocked and he will not be able to receive OTP.