The Indian government has directed telecom service providers (TSPs) in the country to mandatorily display callers' registered names along with their numbers for incoming calls starting November 1, 2026, in an effort to help people identify calls from unknown numbers and tackle spam or fraudulent calls.
To that end, the Department of Telecommunications has issued a circular urging service providers to implement the Calling Name Presentation (CNAP) service.
"At the time when a call is incoming, the calling name presentation service presents the calling name identity of the calling user on the user terminal of the called user," according to a circular issued by the Indian Ministry of Communications dated October 13, 2026.
"Calling name identity is the name of the calling user as recorded in subscriber data record of the originating telecommunication service provider and such identity is included in the calling line identification of such user."
The caller ID system is mainly targeted at wireless terrestrial networks established using 4G and higher generation technologies. The circular noted that a CNAP rollout for 2G and 3G networks, as well as public switched telephone networks (PSTNs), will be taken up separately after examination.
Under the new guidelines, every time a user receives a call, the first field will display the caller's number, as is the existing practice. The second field will contain the name of the calling user in the following order of preference -
- If the number is already saved in the callee's contacts, the corresponding name is displayed.
- If the number is not saved, the calling name identity as stored in the telecom operator's subscriber database will be displayed for domestic calls. The label "International Call" will be presented for calls originating from outside India.
To meet this requirement, every originating TSP is required to establish and maintain a database mapping subscribers' names to their numbers. The operator on the receiving end of the call will query this database to retrieve the calling name identity and present it to the user.
Telecom operators are also expected to provide a Calling Line Identification Restriction (CLIR) facility, as part of which users can choose to hide their caller identity when making calls.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Communications is urging TSPs to adopt a secure-by-design approach when implementing the system and ensure the security of communications by -
- Enforcing that the calling name identity is not retained upon completion of the incoming call
- Maintaining the quality of service in accordance with applicable laws
- Provisioning the necessary database, network, and connectivity infrastructure to support efficient processing of calling name identity queries
Users with business connections or bulk connections can opt for a "preferred name" that replaces the calling name identity. The preferred name has to be one of the following -
- A trade mark registered in the name of the user as per the records of the Trade Marks Registry under the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry
- A trade name of the user as registered on the Goods and Services Tax portal
"For new connections, the preferred name of the user shall be recorded in both the customer application form and subscriber data record and document(s) evidencing proof that the user is registered under such name shall be presented in original to the originating TSP and true copies thereof shall be attached to the customer application form by the originating TSP," according to the circular.
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