CNAP (Caller Name Presentation) and Telecom Operator, Will it effect TrueCaller?

CNAP (Caller Name Presentation) and Telecom Operator, Will it effect TrueCaller?

Recently, the Telecom Regulatory Authority (TRAI) of India’s plan to show callers’ names may have privacy issues, according to telecom providers. According to operators, the plan, known as Caller Name Presentation (CNAP), may also be challenging to implement technically because some phones on the Indian market might not be able to handle it.

What is CNAP (Caller Name Presentation) or caller ID?

TRAI issued a consultation paper in November of last year seeking feedback on the prospective implementation of CNAP. The feature will allow users to determine who is calling them. The fundamental tenet is that people may make wise decisions regarding calls if they are aware of who is calling them. In addition, such a function might be able to reduce harassment and other unwanted calls.

Currently, certain applications, like Truecaller, provide a comparable feature. But each one of them uses data gathered from users and is a third-party app. Telecom companies don’t provide a unified solution.

Four Possible methods proposed by TRAI through which the CNAP feature can be rolled out:

1. In the first model, telcos are responsible for maintaining a CNAP database of each of their individual subscribers. When one of their users calls a user on another network, the telco extracts that user’s data from the database and displays it to the user of the receiving telco. To make use of this model, telcos must improve their current “network nodes,” according to TRAI.
2. The second model is comparable to the first, with the exception that in this instance the calling operator will grant the receiving operator access to its CNAP database.
3. In the third model, a third party would be in charge of running a centralised database. In this scenario, it would be the receiving operator’s responsibility to search the central database for the caller’s data and provide it.
4. According to the fourth model, each telco would need to keep a copy of a synchronized central database run by a different company.

The telecom provider appears to be undecided about the planned function, claiming that it poses risks to users’ privacy and could develop into a complex technical challenge. The feature should be optional, they have largely stated. Different issues have prompted concerns.

Technical Challenges linked to (Caller Name Presentation) or caller ID

The lack of CNAP capability in time-division multiplexing (TDM)-based interconnection between telcos, according to COAI, would be a substantial barrier to CNAP implementation. Furthermore, there are no standards for CNAP over 2G or 3G networks, therefore there isn’t a ready-made solution.

“Even if the solution is developed and implemented, substantial testing would be necessary before being confident in its proper operation. In addition, there are some legacy nodes in our member network where CNAP deployment is not practical, according to COAI.

The fact that not all handsets can implement CNAP functions presents another significant problem. Jio backed up this assertion by stating that there is no concrete evidence of feature phones having the CNAP capability enabled. Furthermore, it added, this feature is not supported by smart feature phones using 4G networks.

Privacy concerns raised by Airtel, Jio, and Vodafone Idea

The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), a trade organisation that represents all three telcos, stated in its submission to TRAI that “given that handset manufacturers and Operating System (OS) providers have control over the data obtained through the CNAP facility, this could result in the breach of subscriber data privacy as the manufacturers of mobile devices and OS providers would gather subscriber data for the entire country.”

The COAI continued, “This would be the biggest worry linked to privacy and confidentiality of the subscriber information of the entire country, since it would be like building up the name and mobile number database as is in the Aadhaar database, with 3rd parties.

The presentation of a user’s name when placing a call, according to Reliance Jio, can “lead to many social and criminal consequences.” It can and will result in more people tracking you on social media. Therefore, it is essential to obtain the customer’s permission before activating the CNAP service on his or her device, according to Jio.

The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), which represents companies in the digital sector, voiced a similar concern and noted that women in particular might be the most vulnerable.

The service will show a woman subscriber’s name and data to every calling party whether or not she consents, the group said, adding that such “issues are gendered in nature and are likely to arise more for women than males and must be addressed.”

Bharti Airtel suggested utilising predictive analytics to screen out users who abuse personal cellphone numbers for commercial reasons and stated that user privacy would have to be balanced while CNAP was being implemented. In the beginning, the caller ID system “should be considered primarily for telemarketers/commercial users/A2P callers,” the telecom advised.

Vodafone Idea stated, “Though CNAP will be a step towards defending the right of the called party to identify the caller against spamming, it may collide with the privacy issue of the calling party who may not wish to flash his/her name into the called party’s screen.”

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