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ezio aulditore   30 September 2022

In india, law allows how much on phone tracking by network providers and police?

For android phones in India-

1). Does law allow police to get a phone's imei number just by using that phone's number?

2). also suppose if a phone was moving around within few miles radious for few days and it was turned on several times in that duration. But now the phone is turned off permanently and only after phone is turned off police starts to try to track the phone for the first time using only the mobile no which was being used by that phone when it was turned on in last few days. So does law allow network provider to store location history of that phone and also are police allowed to get all the locations where that phone were in those last few days ?

3). Also if that phone's user turns off permanently or throws away the phone and take a new phone and inserts the same sim card in that new phone, and only after that if police starts to try to track using that mobile no for the first time, does law allow network providers to store location infos of a past phone of a sim and are police even allowed to get all the location infos about where that old phone were for last few days before it was thrown away?

4). in India, Law allows network providers to how long retain location infos of a cell phone and how much and does law allow police to get those location infos and how much?



 1 Replies

Harsh Raj   03 May 2026

1) Does law allow police to get a phone's IMEI number just by using that phone's number?
Yes. In India, telecom service providers maintain IMEI–SIM mapping records, and police can obtain the IMEI linked to a mobile number through lawful procedure under statutes like the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 and BNSS. Such access requires proper authorization and cannot be done arbitrarily.

2) If a phone was active for a few days and later turned off permanently, can police retrieve its past locations using only the mobile number?
Yes, to a limited extent. Telecom companies store Call Detail Records (CDRs) and cell tower data that indicate approximate past locations when the phone was active. Police can access this historical data with legal authorization, but once the phone is switched off, no real-time tracking is possible.

3) If the SIM is inserted into a new phone, can police access location data of the old phone used earlier?
Yes. Telecom providers log the usage of a SIM across different devices (IMEIs), so past data of the old handset remains linked to that SIM. Police can retrieve both past and current records through due legal process, subject to data retention limits.

4) How long do telecom providers retain location data, and can police access it?
Generally, telecom providers in India retain CDRs and related data for around 1 to 2 years as per DoT regulations (subject to change). Police can access such data only through lawful authorization, and only to the extent that it is retained and necessary for investigation.


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