DoT to use subscriber photos to enforce nine-SIM limit

According to the 2012 subscriber verification guidelines issued, an individual can have up to nine mobile connections across all telecom operators

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) will start using photographs of mobile subscribers to identify people who have reached the maximum number of mobile connections allowed in their name and prevent them from obtaining additional SIM cards.

The limit is six for subscribers in Jammu and Kashmir, Assam and the North-East. (Representative Photo/Pixabay)

Under a circular issued on August 17, seen by HT, DoT said its Digital Intelligence Platform (DIP) will identify and group mobile connections held by an individual across telecom service providers (TSPs). The system will include an image repository of subscribers with nine or more SIMs.

According to the 2012 subscriber verification guidelines issued, an individual can have up to nine mobile connections across all telecom operators and service areas. The limit is six for subscribers in Jammu and Kashmir, Assam and the North-East.

From August 23, “a representative image of the photo” of every subscriber who has reached the permitted limit will be made available to telecom operators through the DIP. Operators will have to download these photographs daily. From August 24, telecom operators will have to put in place systems to identify a subscriber seeking another mobile connection using the photograph available on the DIP. The subscriber will then be informed that they have already reached the maximum number of connections permitted and cannot be given another connection.

According to a DoT official, “a representative image of the photo” means one photograph associated with a subscriber who holds multiple mobile connections, which will be used to help telecom operators identify that subscriber across connections.

Initially, operators can carry out these checks on a next-day basis rather than at the time a new SIM is issued, said the DoT circular. Any SIM activated beyond the allowed limit during this period will be suspended immediately. DoT has directed telecom operators to integrate the photo-based identification into their process for enrolling and activating new mobile connections on a real-time basis by November 30.

DoT said the new guidelines were issued “in order to address the difficulties being faced by service providers having access service license or authorisation (hereinafter referred to as TSPs) in identifying such subscriber who has either already obtained or seeking to obtain mobile connections beyond the prescribed limit”. It said “extensive deliberations” had been held with TSPs before the guidelines were finalised.

Separately, the government is also expected to notify the Telecommunications (User Identification) Rules, 2025 this week, which propose a biometric-based system for identifying telecom users. The draft rules provide for a unique user ID linked to a person’s telecom connections across operators, with telecom companies required to use live photographs or other specified biometric attributes for verification. The system would also enable real-time identity verification across operators, require re-verification in cases such as SIM replacement and number porting, and allow the government to audit the system and seek user-identification records.