Telecom dept, cops bust illegal telecom setup in Secunderabad; one held

Hyderabad: An illegal call routing set-up at Secunderabad was identified and busted on Thursday. The operation was done by the Hyderabad unit of DoT (Department of Telecom) and the Telangana police.

What is an illegal telecom setup?

The illegal set-up was being operated using SIP connections procured by a firm in Hyderabad. A SIP server, three laptops, one monitor and related network equipment were seized.

The SIP connections were being used to route international calls from foreign countries to Indian customers in an illegal way. Calls were found to be routed from the Middle East and America, but showing local Indian numbers. Illegal routing of calls causes revenue loss to the nation and causes hardship to innocent subscribers. Anti-national elements also sometimes use these illegal methods.

Two FIRs have been filed against the firm. One suspect has been apprehended by the police. Involvement of some other persons is suspected and is also being analysed for future action. Further investigation is underway.

In a public note, the officials said that they are proactively working to curb the illegal routing of calls and cyber fraud. The DoT unit in Hyderabad said it is always on its toes to mitigate illegal setups and call routing.