India has amended its commercial communications rules to require caller-ID and call-management apps to share user spam reports with telecom operators, a move Truecaller has criticized as anti-competitive. Under the new regulation issued by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, apps that allow users to flag spam must send those reports to a blockchain-based platform maintained by telecom operators to enforce anti-spam rules. The regulator states the change aims to broaden the pool of spam data available for action against spammers by connecting app reports directly with telecom enforcement infrastructure. Truecaller, which counts India as its largest market with over 350 million monthly active users, argued that the requirement creates a one-way exchange that transfers valuable data to telecom operators. The ruling also maintains previous restrictions preventing call-management apps from blanket blocking or spam-tagging calls from designated number series used for promotional and service communications, despite objections from Truecaller. Legal and policy experts noted that the mandate raises technical, jurisdictional, and enforcement questions regarding how non-telecom apps must comply and what exact information needs to be transmitted. Why it matters: This regulatory shift bridges distinct network layers and forces popular caller-ID apps to feed critical spam intelligence directly to India's telecom operators.