📢 Important Investor Alert: New TRAI SMS Header Rules – How to Spot Real vs Scam Messages
📢 Important Investor Alert: New TRAI SMS Header Rules – How to Spot Real vs Scam Messages
Starting May 6, 2025, a new regulation by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has come into effect to improve the way SMS messages are classified and delivered across India.
This change is designed to make SMS communication more transparent and secure, helping people easily identify genuine messages and avoid potential scams.
🆕 What’s the New Rule?
As per the new TRAI guidelines, all business-related SMS messages must now carry a specific suffix in the sender’s name (also called SMS header) that shows the type of message being sent:
| Suffix | Message Type | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| -P | Promotional | Offers, ads, sales messages |
| -S | Service | Account updates, reminders, information |
| -T | Transactional | Payment alerts, OTPs, confirmations |
| -G | Government | Messages from authorized govt sources |
📱 What You’ll See on Your Phone
SMS headers (the sender’s name) will now end with a letter like -T or -S based on the message type.
For example:
Old Format: XY-UPDATE
New Format: XY-UPDATE-T (for a transactional message)
This small change plays a big role in helping you recognize whether a message is real or possibly a scam.
❗ Why It’s Important for You
With more and more fraudsters sending fake SMS messages pretending to be official updates, this new rule helps you spot what's real and what's risky.
- 🚩 A message that looks urgent but doesn’t follow the new format could be suspicious.
- 🔐 With these suffixes, you now have a quick way to verify the message type before opening or acting on it.
✅ How to Protect Yourself
- ✔️ Always check the SMS header suffix (
-P,-S,-T, or-G) - 🚫 Ignore messages from unknown or incorrect headers
- 🔒 Never click on links in messages unless you’re fully sure of the source
🧾 Summary
This change is a step in the right direction to improve SMS safety and reduce spam, phishing, and fraud attempts. With a little awareness, you can stay ahead of scammers and protect your financial and personal information.
