Bureau, a unified risk decisioning platform, has introduced Silent Mobile Verification (SMV), a capability that checks a mobile number and its link to the SIM on the requesting device in real time. The company developed the tool in line with specifications from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). It runs in the background through the mobile operator’s data network and does not rely on one-time passwords (OTPs) sent by SMS. According to the announcement, businesses can use it for user login, Unified Payments Interface (UPI) SIM binding, and transaction authentication.
NPCI expands the device-binding framework
The launch follows NPCI circular OC-238, which expands the device-binding framework for UPI in India. Under the circular, NPCI recognises Silent Mobile Verification as an alternate device-binding method alongside SMS-based binding. UPI members and application providers must combine SMV with SMS-based methods. The network-based approach, therefore adds to existing SMS binding rather than replacing it.
The timing gives Bureau’s launch direct regulatory relevance: providers that must meet the expanded framework now have a recognised option for device binding that runs without manual input from the user.
How SMV works
During UPI registration, the application sends the user’s mobile number and device IP address to Bureau. Bureau then routes the authentication through the relevant telecom operator. The operator uses mobile network intelligence to check whether the submitted number matches the SIM associated with the requesting device. It returns a match or no-match response, which Bureau says takes under four seconds. The user does not need to enter a code or take any other manual step.
Bureau presents SMV as an additional authentication layer within the broader UPI security framework. The company states that the tool is designed only for mobile number and SIM verification. It does not replace KYC checks, identity verification, or full fraud risk assessment. Instead, it is intended to work alongside identity, device, behavioural, network, and transaction signals as part of a layered approach to fraud prevention.
Beyond UPI registration and SIM binding, Bureau says the capability can support onboarding, login, and transaction authentication. In each case, it adds network-verified mobile signals to the security controls businesses already use.
Parag Modi, Business Head, Bureau, said SMV has more than 96% coverage across India’s three main mobile operators. The tool processes more than 3 million transactions daily across more than 20 live enterprise clients. The official also pointed to Bureau’s collaboration with NPCI and Indian telecom operators as part of the rollout.
Implications for the UPI ecosystem
Ranjan R Reddy, Founder and CEO, Bureau, describes a wider shift in authentication from point-in-time verification towards signals that can be assessed in the background. According to the company, mobile networks already hold information about the relationship between a subscriber and a device. SMV is intended to make that information usable during onboarding, transactions, and SIM binding. The aim is to remove unnecessary steps while keeping additional controls in place where the level of risk calls for them.
For UPI members and application providers, the main operational point is the NPCI requirement to pair SMV with SMS-based binding. In addition, providers adopting network-based verification will run it alongside SMS methods, giving device binding a second layer instead of a single SMS check.
