Technology
New Delhi - Cheap Chinese mobile phones are posing as a security threat to India as unlike proper, branded handsets, these duplicate copies have fake International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number. They are also eating into earnings of branded manufacturers and posing as health risk to users.
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According to a government source, the Intelligence Bureau (IB), which is investigating the recent terrorist attacks that took place in India, fake IMEI numbers make it almost impossible for the law enforcement agencies and investigators to track down suspicious calls.
"SIM card details can be traced from a mobile phone only if it has a valid IMEI number," a government official said, on conditions of anonymity.
"An IMEI number consists of 15-17 digits. Genuine branded phones carry valid IMEI numbers. When the SIM card in a mobile phone gets activated, the IMEI number gets automatically registered with the GSM service provider and it becomes possible to trace a call and find out the caller's identity and the location from where the call was made," the official said.
By using the IMEI number, the security agencies not only can block the handset, but also retrieve call details from the recovered handset.
Even CDMA mobile phones have an electronic serial number equivalent to the IMEI number in GSM mobile phones.
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