Truecaller to Make Caller ID Service Available on WhatsApp for Improved Spam Detection, CEO Says

Users in countries like India receive an average of 17 spam calls in a month, according to a 2021 Truecaller report.

By Reuters | Updated: 8 May 2023 19:48 IST

Truecaller to Make Caller ID Service Available on WhatsApp for Improved Spam Detection, CEO Says

Photo Credit: Reuters

Telemarketers have started using WhatsApp to contact users

Highlights

Truecaller is beta testing the ability to identify calls on WhatsApp
The feature is expected to roll out to users later this month
Truecaller's CEO says spam calling on WhatsApp is a recent phenomenon

Truecaller will soon start making its caller identification service available over WhatsApp and other messaging apps to help users spot potential spam calls over the Internet, the company told Reuters on Monday.

The feature, currently in beta phase, will be rolled out globally later in May, Truecaller Chief Executive Alan Mamedi said.

Telemarketing and scamming calls have been on the rise in countries like India, where users get about 17 spam calls per month on average, according to a 2021 report by Truecaller.

Samsung Wins Patent for a Tri-Fold Smartphone With Specialised Barrier Layer for Improved Durability

India's telecom regulator in February directed carriers like Jio and Airtel to start blocking telemarketing calls over their networks using artificial intelligence filters. Truecaller has said it is in discussions with telecom operators to implement such a solution.

"Over the last two weeks, we have seen a spike in user reports from India about spam calls over WhatsApp," Mamedi said, noting that telemarketers switching to Internet calling was fairly new to the market.

WhatsApp is the most used messaging platform in India. The company says it uses spam detection technology to spot and take action on accounts engaging in abnormal behaviour and lets users block and report problematic accounts.

WhatsApp Will Soon Let You Lock Chats and Transcribe Voice Notes: Details

For Truecaller, India is its biggest market with 250 million users. It has 350 million users globally and earns its revenue from advertising, subscription services, and verified listings from businesses.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

OnePlus recently launched its first tablet in India, the OnePlus Pad, which is only sold in a Halo Green colour option. With this tablet, OnePlus has stepped into a new territory that's dominated by Apple's iPad. We discuss this and more on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.

Comments

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.