India Considers Mandating Always On Satellite Location for Phones

India is weighing a contentious industry proposal that would compel smartphone manufacturers to enable always on satellite based assisted GPS location tracking on devices, according to documents, emails and five sources with knowledge of the matter. The proposal, put forward by the Cellular Operators Association of India, seeks to make precise device level locations available to authorities when requested for law enforcement purposes.

The proposal has prompted a forceful pushback from global handset makers. Apple, Google and Samsung have warned officials that mandating continuous satellite based tracking would effectively turn smartphones into dedicated surveillance devices and raise significant legal, privacy and national security concerns. Industry letters and internal government documents seen by Reuters caution that the measure would be unprecedented globally and could put at risk people whose safety depends on secrecy, including judges, journalists and security personnel.

Government officials are studying the proposal amid a broader debate over digital regulation and surveillance powers. The information technology and home ministries are reported to be examining technical and legal implications, and no final decision has been taken. The discussion arrives in the wake of public uproar earlier this year that led New Delhi to abandon a separate order requiring phone makers to preload a government cyber safety application.

Proponents say the change would allow law enforcement to obtain highly accurate locations in criminal investigations and emergency situations by activating assisted GPS at the device level. The Cellular Operators Association of India frames the measure as a tool for modern policing in an era of increasingly mobile crimes. The public documents and emails, however, show that major technology companies and privacy advocates view the proposal as crossing a line between lawful investigation and constant state enabled tracking.

Technical experts and industry representatives have flagged multiple concerns. Always on satellite based assisted GPS would likely require changes to device firmware and operating systems, create new attack surfaces for adversaries seeking to spoof or hijack location signals, and pose power management challenges for battery operated devices. The documents emphasize that a mandate of this sort would be without clear international precedent, creating regulatory fragmentation for manufacturers that operate across multiple jurisdictions.

Civil society groups and media organizations have argued that compelled continuous tracking could chill free expression and investigative journalism, and could endanger people who rely on anonymity to perform public interest work. Security personnel and judicial officials are similarly cited as groups that could be exposed if location data were misused or leaked.

For smartphone makers the dispute raises hard choices. Compliance could mean redesigning software and accepting new legal liabilities. Resistance could precipitate court fights or business friction with Indian regulators. The ministries’ review will need to weigh law enforcement benefits against the legal safeguards, oversight mechanisms and accountability measures that would be necessary to prevent misuse.

As India considers its next steps, the debate highlights a global tension between public safety ambitions and the privacy expectations embedded in modern mobile technology. The outcome will shape not only how devices sold in India operate, but also international conversations about the limits of mandated surveillance capabilities.