India reports 31 lakh complaints against spam calls and digital arrest scams in 2025; 33,000 numbers blocked

KOCHI: More than 31 lakh complaints were registered across the country last year against spam calls attempting digital arrest scams and loan frauds. Telecom service providers blocked around 33,000 phone numbers. The data was released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.

In 2025 alone, about 4,168 crore suspicious calls were identified by the caller ID app Truecaller on Indian phones. Users themselves blocked around 1189 crore calls. Out of the total spam calls, nearly 770 crore were related to financial fraud.

Fraudsters usually impersonate officials such as investigators, bank staff, or payment service providers. They also sent hundreds of fraudulent links and 12,903 SMS messages in a year to cheat people.

As complaints continue to rise each year, TRAI has issued guidelines to telecom service providers. If a call involves suspected financial fraud, proper KYC verification must be carried out to confirm authenticity. Direct verification should also be done. If anything suspicious is found, warnings must be issued and the number should be blocked.

Rs 54,000 crore lost
So far, people in India, including senior citizens, have lost around Rs 54,000 crore to digital arrest scams.

Spam call complaints
2023: 13.62 lakh complaints
2024: 19.38 lakh complaints
2025: 31.09 lakh complaints

Safety tips

• Banks will never ask for OTP over phone calls
• No investigation agency conducts “digital arrest”
• Links and video calls on WhatsApp can be traps
• Install TRAI’s Do Not Disturb (DND) app on your phone
• Use phones with built-in spam filters
• Calls from numbers starting with 140 and 160 are usually authorised

If you become a victim

1. Inform your bank immediately and notify your mobile service provider
2. File a complaint at cybercrime.gov.in or call the cybercrime helpline 1930
3. Report through the ‘Chakshu’ platform on the Sanchar Saathi app
4. Reset your UPI PIN, internet banking password, email, and app passwords

“Use common sense when receiving unknown calls. Even if you answer, do not follow instructions given by fraudsters.”
-Nandakishore Harikumar
Cyber expert