Bharti Airtel says its network-level AI systems have flagged 98.4 billion suspected spam calls and 4.4 billion spam messages in two years, while blocking more than 1.62 million malicious links. The figures mark two years since the operator launched AI-powered spam detection in September 2024.

The system works inside the network, scanning calls and messages before they reach customers. Airtel has expanded it into a broader “Safe Network” suite that includes OTP-linked fraud protection, designed to intervene when users are manipulated into sharing one-time passwords. A business-name display feature helps users distinguish verified enterprise calls from impostors.

The malicious links were blocked across SMS, messaging apps, emails and browser redirects for mobile and broadband subscribers. Airtel says the approach moves fraud prevention upstream, instead of relying only on users to spot scams.

The company figures describe its own detection metrics, not confirmed losses. Still, the scale is striking: the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre says Indians lost over Rs 52,976 crore to cyber fraud in six years.