{
  "id": 16490134,
  "title": "'Online scams need an ecosystem-wide crackdown'",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/25/online-scams-need-an-ecosystem-wide-crackdown",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-25T14:20:49.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Economic Times",
    "slug": "the-economic-times",
    "url": "https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/telecom/telecom-policy/telecom-rules-alone-cant-stop-online-scams-entire-ecosystem-must-act-gsma-chief/articleshow/135192643.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "New Delhi: The Global System for Mobile Communications (GSMA), a global telecom industry body, is advocating for a comprehensive approach to combat online scams and preserve public confidence in digital technologies, according to a senior official. In an interview with PTI, GSMA Director General Vivek Badrinath emphasized that while telecom regulations have become more streamlined, there is still potential for enhancement. He highlighted trust and scams as significant concerns, noting that no single entity has the complete solution. The operators, social networks, and banks all play a role in the ecosystem, and unified, ecosystem-wide regulations are necessary to tackle the issue effectively, Badrinath stated.\n\nThe Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has established a Joint Committee of Regulators (JCoR) to address scams and cyber fraud, but individual sectoral regulators continue to govern rules separately. Badrinath urged both the government and regulators to be receptive to dialogue and streamline rules to foster industry growth. He suggested focusing more on enabling regulations for 5G monetisation, particularly in launching innovative services such as applications for factories, hospitals, and remote care. Network slicing, a key feature of 5G technology, could facilitate innovation and the introduction of new services, provided the market allows it. Quality of service must remain consistent across all levels, but operators should also be granted the flexibility to offer enhanced features for business applications, Badrinath explained.\n\nThe GSMA representative cautioned against devaluing the fundamental service in favour of tiered offerings, emphasizing that operators cannot selectively provide advanced services like AI to premium tiers while denying them to lower tiers. He stressed that quality of service should be preserved and operators held accountable, but those willing to pay extra for superior services should not be excluded.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}