New Delhi: The central government has introduced new regulations aimed at curbing cybercrime, under which messaging applications such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Snapchat, ShareChat, JioChat, Arattai and Josh will no longer function on devices that do not contain an active SIM card. The rules mandate that these apps operate only when a valid, active SIM is present in the device.
The Telecom Ministry has also imposed restrictions on web-based logins. Users who access these apps through browsers will be required to log out and log back in every six hours, failing which they will be automatically logged out. The directive, issued on November 28, 2025, came into immediate effect.
