Airtel and Google Deploy AI-Powered RCS Spam Protection to Combat Digital Fraud in India

Airtel and Google Roll Out AI-Powered RCS Spam Protection in India

* RCS service adds sender verification and DND checks * New RCS system filters malicious links in real time * Android users get safer messaging via Google Messages Airtel has partnered with Google to offer improved security for Rich Communications Services (RCS) messaging in India, aiming to curb spam and digital fraud on mobile devices. The tie-up combines Airtel's telecom network intelligence with Google's RCS platform to introduce stronger verification and filtering checks for rich messaging. The service will be available to Android users through the Google Messages app and is intended to add an extra layer of security to regular mobile messaging. Airtel Integrates AI Spam Filters With Google's RCS Platform The telecom service provider says that it is integrating its network intelligence with Google's RCS platform and existing spam filters to deliver a more secure, rich messaging experience via the Google Messages app on most Android smartphones. With the new partnership, Airtel will embed its AI-based spam detection tools into Google's RCS framework. The companies said this integration will support real-time scrutiny of business communications, sender authentication, and stronger filtering of suspicious or malicious content. The companies said that users will continue to access features such as high-resolution photo and video sharing, typing indicators, read receipts, and message reactions, along with added protection against spam and fraudulent links. According to Airtel, its AI-powered anti-spam systems have blocked 71 billion spam calls and 2.9 billion spam SMS messages in the past 18 months. The company said these measures have resulted in a 68.7 percent decline in the value of financial losses reported on its network. It added that gaps remain on certain over-the-top messaging services that do not follow telecom-grade security standards. The RCS-based system will introduce multiple layers of safeguards, the company explained. These include telecom-backed verification of business senders and enforcement of Do Not Disturb preferences by classifying messages as promotional or transactional. The system can also block spam business messages, filter malicious links through multi-layer threat detection, and limit messages from senders flagged by Airtel and Google's AI filters. Both companies said the collaboration demonstrates how telecom operators and technology platforms can work together to strengthen security, verification, and accountability in India's digital messaging ecosystem.

Airtel, Google partner to check spam in messages with web link

Bharti Airtel is partnering with Google to deploy an AI-enabled spam protection tool on Google's messaging platform. This collaboration aims to safeguard Airtel customers from digital fraud and spam by combining network intelligence with Google's RCS platform. Airtel is urging other internet-based apps to join this initiative to enhance customer security. Bharti Airtel will deploy its AI-enabled spam protection tool on text messages sent via Google's messaging platform to protect its customers from potential digital fraud, as part of the collaboration between the two firms, the telecom operator said on Sunday. Following the partnership, Bharti Airtel has called out other internet-based apps to work with it to fight against spam messages. "By combining Airtel's network intelligence with Google's Rich Communications Services (RCS) platform and spam filtering, users get to experience RCS messaging with high-quality photo/video and interactive elements like message reactions, all while benefiting from enhanced protections that significantly reduce mobile spam and digital fraud," the statement said. Airtel claims to have blocked a staggering 7,100 crore spam calls and 290 crore spam SMSes that has led to a huge 68.7 per cent decrease in the value of financial losses on its network through its AI enabled tools in the last 1.5 years. Several internet-based applications provide bulk messaging services in which senders can incorporate web links for transactions. "We have now partnered with Google to extend customer protection beyond the telco domain and made the rich messaging platform safer and more secure. We now call on the broader OTT communication platforms to work with us and make sure that customers are protected from the spam and financial fraud menace," Bharti Airtel, Executive Vice Chairman, Gopal Vittal, said. Airtel said traditional mobile networks offer messaging services that operate under safety standards and telco-grade safeguards but many other non-telco communication platforms and standalone apps lack these safeguards. "These channels have therefore increasingly been exploited by sophisticated bad actors, becoming common tools for financial fraud and invasive spam. This innovative partnership between Airtel and Google is designed to bridge that gap, extending the accountability of telecom-grade safeguards to the modern messaging experience," the statement said. The company said that by integrating Airtel's intelligence into the RCS platform and Google's existing spam protections, the companies are setting a new benchmark for a secure carrier-backed messaging service. Sameer Samat, President, Android Ecosystem at Google, said that brands leveraging the messaging service for enterprise communications will be able to foster trust amongst their customers by enabling them to easily distinguish legitimate business messages from spam and stay protected from potential risks that may emerge in other messaging platforms without these stringent checks. "The solution will enable brands to build deeper engagement with their customers who will feel safer and in more control. This will, in turn, lead to enduring customer relationships which are imperative for business growth and success," Samat said.