Sanchar Saathi Row: What the pre-installed app may or may not fix in smartphones – cyber experts explain

The Union government’s directions to smartphone makers to pre-install the Sanchar Saathi app on mobile phones have ignited a political storm, with several Opposition leaders branding the move ‘dystopian’ and accusing the Centre of creating a tool for ‘snooping’ on citizens.

Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Minister for Communications, however, clarified on Tuesday that installing the ‘fraud reporting’ app on all devices would be optional and can be deleted by users.