By Admin 
Sim Blocking: The biggest worry when a smartphone or SIM card is lost or stolen is that the data related to it may not be used anywhere. Today, in this era of digitalization, everything from bank account to UPI app, social media platforms are linked to the mobile number. In such a situation, if the lost SIM card falls into wrong hands, it can be used for financial fraud and ID hacking.
Since today most of the online services are based on One-Time Password (OTP) sent to the registered mobile number, blocking the lost SIM card should be your biggest priority. It is a matter of relief that telecom operators and the Government of India provide many ways to immediately block a lost SIM card and disable a stolen smartphone.
What to do first if SIM card is stolen?
- First of all, lodge an online or offline FIR regarding phone theft or loss and keep its digital copy with you.
- Get a duplicate SIM card of your lost number immediately from a nearby telecom store as OTP verification will be required on the portal.
- Keep a digital copy of any one of Aadhar Card, PAN Card, Voter ID Card, Driving License with you. If so, keep the original mobile bill also.
Sanchar Saathi Portal
The Government of India’s Sanchar Sathi portal allows you to instantly block your lost or stolen mobile phone and SIM card. This is a portal run by the Department of Telecommunications, which is connected to all the telecom networks across the country.
online way to block
- First of all open the official portal sancharsaathi.gov.in.
- Click on the option of ‘Block Your Lost/Stolen Mobile’ under the ‘Citizen Centric Services’ section on the homepage.
- Now a red colored form will open in front of you. In this, you will be asked to enter information about the owner of the mobile phone, the device and the location where the phone is lost, the nearest police station, FIR number etc.
- Now enter the OTP received on your newly activated number, click on Declaration and finally click on Submit.
- Apart from this, you can also get your SIM blocked by calling customer care.
What will happen next?
After submission, first you will see a unique request ID on the screen. With this you can check the status of your complaint. After submitting the form on Sanchar Sathi portal, your device gets blocked within the next 24 hours. Actually, after filing the complaint, the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) will block the IMEI numbers of your phone on all cellular network providers across the country. Now no matter how much the thief inserts a new SIM card, there will be no signal on that phone. IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) is a unique identification number of your phone. This is a code of 15 digits.
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