DoT blocks privacy-friendly phone number app Doosra

The Department of Telecommunications issued an order essentially halting the Doosra app’s operations completely. Doosra sells secondary mobile numbers to users to hand out at shops or online, where providing a number is mandatory, but may leave people open to spam messages or calls. A spokesperson for Vodafone Idea Ltd, the telco which provides the mobile numbers and network infrastructure on which Doosra runs, said the hold on Doosra’s services by the telecom department was valid “until further orders.” Mr. Vuchi refused to comment to The Hindu. On his profile on X, formerly Twitter, he has said that “regulators are focused on understanding the detailed workings of virtual mobile numbers … and map it to the current regulatory framework.” Telecommunications is heavily regulated in India by the DoT, which subjects new entrants to stringent regulatory approvals that can take months, or even years. Doosra has a Virtual Network Operator licence, Mr. Vuchi wrote, and the DoT still ordered the service blocked.