DoT Mandates Caller Name Presentation for 5G and 4G Networks From Next Month

Indian phone users will start seeing names of callers starting next month, as the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has announced the rollout of the Caller Name Presentation (CNAP) service. The functionality has been in testing by telecom service providers (TSPs) across the country in different circles since last year. CNAP will be rolled out first for 5G and 4G LTE connections. The DoT announced that the service's introduction for 2G and 3G networks will be considered separately. As part of the functionality, users will be shown the registered name of the caller on their phone, eliminating the need for them to download a third-party app.

DoT Sets CNAP's Wider Rollout in India for November 1

In its latest order dated October 13, the Ministry of Communications' DoT announced that all authorised TSPs have been “instructed” to roll out the CNAP service in their 4G and newer-generation telecommunication networks, including 5G, across all service areas from November 1. This means that the CNAP service will be enabled for the 6G telecommunication networks when it is released by TSPs. On the other hand, the introduction of the CNAP service for 2G and 3G networks, along with landline connections, will be considered separately.

Further, the notification highlights that every new authorised TSP will also have to ensure the default implementation of the new caller identification service for their respective 4G, 5G, and newer generation telecommunication networks. DoT's order states that CNAP should be rolled out after securing it from tampering. The TSPs have been instructed not to ask for any additional requests from users. DoT's order explains that the new caller identification functionality will display two separate fields. The first field will contain the phone number of the user, while the second field will mention the name of the user, as mentioned in the database.

During the rollout of CNAP, TSPs will have to follow the “security-by-design approach”, where the caller's name will not be retained after the completion of the incoming call. Moreover, DoT has instructed TSPs that the name of the caller should appear only when the name of the user has not been saved in the phone's contact list. The caller identification will only be presented in the case of domestic calls. Meanwhile, the second field will mention “International Call” when the incoming call originates from a different country.

DoT's CNAP mandate comes after months of trial runs by different TSPs in select circles in India. As previously mentioned, with the rollout of CNAP, users will be shown the names when they receive a call from an unknown caller. The service utilises the Caller ID Name (CNAM) database and matches the names of users with the telecom KYC records linked to the phone number of the incoming caller. You can read more about CNAP here.