Telecommunications industry leaders in the United Kingdom and India are set to collaborate on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to tackle online fraud, scams and other digital harms.
The partnership follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the UK government and the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI).
The agreement provides a framework for the two countries’ telecommunications industries to share knowledge, exchange expertise and strengthen engagement on key digital fraud-related challenges affecting the UK and India.
It will also explore how the latest technologies, including advances in AI, can be applied to improve the way telecommunications networks are designed, managed and secured.
The collaboration is expected to strengthen fraud resilience in both countries by placing telecommunications industry players at the centre of efforts to combat digital fraud.
Digital fraud has increasingly become a transnational organised crime, requiring closer coordination between governments, telecommunications companies and other stakeholders to detect and disrupt criminal activities.
The UK-India partnership will bring together experts from both countries to support the development of a safer and more trusted digital ecosystem.
Ben Mellor, Acting British High Commissioner to India, said rapid advances in technology were transforming communication networks and creating new opportunities to strengthen digital security.
“We are living through an extraordinary period of technological change, with AI transforming the way communication networks are designed and secured.”
He said industry partners had a critical role to play in protecting citizens, businesses and institutions from malicious actors.
“That’s why close collaboration between governments and industry – and in forums such as these – is so important,” he added.
According to Mr Mellor, the MoU demonstrates the shared commitment of the UK and India to addressing emerging challenges at the intersection of telecommunications and digital security.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Lt Gen. Dr S.P. Kochhar, Director General of COAI, said India’s next phase of connectivity must be intelligent, secure, resilient and focused on citizens.
“Telecom networks will not only support AI workloads; they will increasingly become AI-enabled systems capable of optimising performance, strengthening security, improving service quality and protecting consumers from emerging digital risks.”
He said the agreement reflected the importance of international collaboration in shaping the future of secure digital connectivity.
The partnership also reinforces commitments under the Technology Security Initiative (TSI) and the UK-India Vision 2035, which seek to ensure that technological innovation, including the development and adoption of AI, strengthens trust in digital services.
The UK government said digital fraud increasingly crosses national borders, with more than two-thirds of fraud cases in the UK having an international element.
The initiatives under the TSI are therefore expected to enable the UK and India to collaborate on the development and deployment of advanced telecommunications and AI technologies while addressing emerging digital security threats.
The partnership underscores the growing role of AI in network security, fraud detection, consumer protection and the resilience of digital infrastructure as both countries seek to respond to increasingly sophisticated online threats.
