After intense backlash, India withdraws authorization for pre-installation of government app on smartphones

India has backed away from its plan to force smartphone makers to pre-install a government app on all devices, after a backlash and Growing concerns A mandate would expand state access to users’ devices and weaken privacy protections.

The Indian Ministry of Communications announced on Wednesday He said Sanchar Saathi, an anti-theft and cybersecurity protection app, will remain voluntary, and smartphone makers will not be required to pre-load it on devices they sell.

The new notice effectively mirrors guidance issued to manufacturers last week (and circulated online on Monday) that instructed manufacturers to integrate the app into all devices and prevent its features from being disabled. News of the mandate quickly raised concerns about privacy and state overreach.

“In view of the growing acceptance of Sanchar Saathi, the government has decided not to make pre-installation mandatory for mobile phone manufacturers,” the ministry said.

However, the government has not yet issued a formal notification to smartphone manufacturers reflecting the withdrawal, and manufacturers are still waiting for official instructions, two manufacturer sources involved in the proceedings told TechCrunch.

Since its release in January 2025, Sanchar Saathi has now been downloaded 14 million times, and contributes information about nearly 2,000 cyber fraud incidents every day, according to the Indian government. The recent controversy has strengthened interest in the platform, and the ministry indicated that about 600,000 citizens registered to download the application on December 2 alone.

The Ministry of Communications notification comes after much confusion over whether the application is truly voluntary, as the government has claimed. The Minister for Communications was Jyotiraditya Scindia He insisted Earlier this week, users could delete Sanchar Saathi at any time, although guidance circulating among manufacturers states that the app’s functionality “should not be disabled or restricted.”

The mixed signals sparked criticism that the government was trying to reduce the scope of its mandate. Critics warned that imposing a government app on every smartphone, and preventing its features from being disabled, would give authorities excessive visibility into users’ devices.

The directive has also raised concerns within the industry, with manufacturers in particular questioning the feasibility of imposing a system-wide permanent enforcement without clear legal backing.

Deputy Communications Minister Bimasani Chandrasekhar He said In media interviews, Apple did not participate in the initiative’s working group, although other smartphone makers did.

Sanchar Sathe had more than 3 million monthly active users in November, according to marketing intelligence firm Sensor Tower. Web traffic to Sanchar Saathi was also up, with the number of monthly unique visitors up more than 49% year-on-year, per Sensor Tower.

The Internet Freedom Foundation, a New Delhi-based digital rights group, called the reversal a “welcome development,” but… He urged cautionNoting that it is still waiting for the legal order that must accompany the announcement. The group added that “cautious optimism, not closure” is warranted until revised guidance under the 2024 Cybersecurity Rules is published and independently verified.

Other parts of the Sanchar Saathi ecosystem continue to expand. Trade-in and trade-in platforms are still required to verify the authenticity of devices through a central IMEI database, and the Ministry of Communications is also piloting an application programming interface (API) that could allow these companies to send customer and device information directly to the country.