Fact-Check: TRAI Is NOT Offering Free Recharge; Viral Message Is a Scam!

A link and a screenshot seemingly to be from an Indian government website is going viral on social media to claim that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is offering a free mobile recharge to people.

(Archives of similar claims can be seen here and here.)

What's the truth?: The link mentioned in the claim is a fraudulent website.

• The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting also clarified that this viral link is a scam and this claim is fake.

How did we find out the truth?: We noticed that the website link mentioned in the claims did not led us to the official website of TRAI not did it carry any specific details of prepaid recharge.

• We then checked TRAI's official website to see if there was any similar notice but did not find any.

• Moreover, TRAI cannot provide free recharges for any prepaid plan as it is not a telecom company. Its function is to regulate telecom services, including fixing/revising tariffs.

Further, we found a clarification from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, who stated that this claim is fake and the link used in the claim is a scam.

More about the link: We checked the domain of the viral link and it was recently registered in China in July 2024.

• Another link seen in some viral images also links to China and is being shared with same claim.

• The domain of these links suggests that it is not genuine, and no mention of TRAI or the National Informatics Centre (NIC) (registrar of TRAI) was found here.

Conclusion: TRAI is not offering free recharge, the viral post is false and the link is a scam.

(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9540511818 , or e-mail it to us at [e-mail] and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)