Registration of prepaid sim cards vs scammers pushed
A HOUSE leader on Friday joined the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in calling for the registration of prepaid sim cards to help authorities trace scammers and fraudulent online activities.
Deputy Speaker for Trade and Industry and Valenzuela City Rep. Wes Gatchalian, one of the primary authors of the House Bill No. 5793 or the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) Card Registration Act, joined the call in light of the growing number of online scams and fraudulent transactions involving food delivery services, among others.
“We change SIM cards as fast as we change our soiled shirts. Alarmingly, this seeming boundless stream of supply has become a magnet for nefarious and illegal activities,” Gatchalian said.
“For example, mobile phone numbers are used to register to food delivery services like GrabFood and Food Panda. And because users can create fake names and hide behind the anonymity that a prepaid mobile number can give, they become brazen in committing fraudulent acts,” Gatchalian explained.
Gatchalian noted that even the telcos themselves as well delivery riders are supportive of the push for mandatory SIM card registration.
“We want to protect the interest of our hardworking food and package delivery riders who have no choice but absorb the expenses and the penalties incurred when they fall victim to these pranks and scams,” Gatchalian stressed.
He also said that even text scams would virtually beeradicated should the SIM Card Registration Act be enacted into law.
“We would easily be able to ascertain the identity of these scammers as everyone purchasing a prepaid SIM card would now be required to provide a valid ID,” Gatchalian said.
Gatchalian further stressed that the registration of mobile prepaid SIM cards goes hand in hand with the proposed Internet Transactions Act (ITA), of which he is also principal author, in curbing illegal activities online.
“SIM card registration imposes liability on the user while the ITA imposes solidary liability on the e-commerce platform with the online merchant in specific instances. With these two laws in place, the e-commerce sphere would be a safer place for consumers and businesses alike,” Gatchalian said.
