Digital fraud is one of India’s growing concerns and the Supreme Court of India wants to tackle this problem vehemently. The court has asked the Indian government to make it compulsory for prepaid phone users to prove/disclose their identity before they can recharge their phone numbers with credit. 

Chief Justice of India JS Khehar made the announcement earlier this week as a plea was brought to court. The court has given the government a time-frame of one year to implement this new rule. 

The court added that a customer would be required to fill an Adhaar-based form before recharging in order to verify the identity. However, the court did not elaborate whether existing customers will have to do the same to recharge their phones. 

© India

Aadhar card is used as an identity for various documentation and verification purposes, thanks to the biometric nature of the program. Citizens of India had to register their fingerprints and iris scans in addition to other identity details to get an Aadhar card. Currently, there are over 1 billion Aadhar cardholders in the country. 

© Reuters

The court’s decision to implement an identity check before recharging might impact telecom operators in India and can also lead to a gradual drop in their subscriber base. The Indian industry sphere is one the world’s most competitive and tariff-driven industry. More than 90 percent mobile phone connections are pre-paid and could cause a lot of inconvenience for the general public.