Ahead of the festive season, Amazon and Flipkart have announced their sales events. These sales offer substantial discounts, making them a highly anticipated opportunity for consumers to purchase new phones or household goods. While festive deals promise significant savings, reports suggest that some customers have received counterfeit smartphones (fakes that appear original), used devices, or even non-functional phones during sales. To verify the authenticity of a phone purchased during a sale, consumers can utilize the Sanchar Saathi Portal, a government website. Every mobile device is assigned a unique 15-digit IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number. By using the Sanchar Saathi Portal, users can check whether a phone delivered during a sale is genuine or fake. The process involves visiting the official Sanchar Saathi website, navigating to the ‘Citizen Centric Services’ section, and selecting the ‘Know Your Mobile/IMEI Verification’ option. After entering a mobile number and the displayed captcha, an OTP (One-Time Password) is sent. Submitting the OTP allows users to input the phone’s IMEI number, revealing device details such as its status, brand, model, type, and manufacturing information.
