India, Sept. 21 -- The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has warned citizens against the misuse of SIM cards and telecom identifiers, stating that specified violations under the Telecommunications Act, 2023 can attract imprisonment of up to three years and financial penalties of up to Rs50 lakh. The advisory comes after authorities detected a fraudulent SIM issuance racket in Chhattisgarh.

According to the Ministry of Communications, a Point of Sale (PoS) agent in Chhattisgarh activated 25 mobile connections using identity documents belonging to citizens without their knowledge or consent. The DoT, working with telecom service providers, subsequently blacklisted the agent, permanently preventing the outlet from issuing new mobile c...