Congress Passes SIM Card Registration Law on Second Reading

Congress Passes SIM Card Registration Law on Second Reading

According to news and local reports, the House of Representatives has finally passed the proposed SIM Card Registration Law on its second reading. This is meant to protect the privacy of consumers and citizens all over the country.

Under this provision, every public telecommunications entity (PTE) or authorized seller has to require the end-user to fill out forms pertaining to their personal information. This includes name, date of birth, gender, mobile number, serial number, and address in accordance with government-issued identification. This measure is to ensure public security and lessen the instances of troll texting, hackers, and other nefarious tactics employed by scammers.

Another requirement is for the person who will be using the SIM to be present when making the purchase, to help lessen chances of fake identities or buying in bulk “for others.”

This issue has been particularly evident during the pandemic. Local giant telecom Smart has shared its information regarding these scams, and the number is alarming: 11.3 billion attempts to access malicious sites prevented, 342 million smishing messages halted in their tracks, 167,000 mobile numbers disabled due to scams, and 5.5 million URLs blocked. It seems that many are trying to prey on the technologically-vulnerable such as the uninformed, elderly, or even children. The NTC has already released numerous statements for consumers to stay vigilant and what’s being done on their end to combat this ever-evolving issue.

That’s why Smart has been very supportive of this proposed SIM Card Registration Law: “Consumer online protection has always been one of Smart’s advocacies. Safeguarding our customers against fraud is part of our commitment to ensure leveled-up customer experience,” PLDT and Smart President and CEO Alfredo Panlilio said.

Now that the proposed SIM Card Registration Law has passed the House of Representatives, it will finally make its way to the Senate and eventually into the hands of our President.

 

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