Consumer group demands stricter measures vs. SIM-swap scam 

Consumer group TxtPower on Thursday called on telecommunications companies to impose stricter measures against identity theft through SIM card replacement. 

 

"The bad elements know there is a weak link somewhere... The problem is how the telcos check the documents [of the scammers]. They are supposedly strict about new applications and renewal of contracts," TXTPower President Tonyo Cruz said in an interview on television. 

 

Cruz called on telcos to cooperate with authorities by producing all documents submitted by alleged scammers as well as CCTV footages that expose their identities. 

 

Consumers must demand from telcos the same stringent modes of verification as banks do, said Cruz.

 

"We cannot be expected to pay for something we didn’t order. That is [tantamount to] identity theft," he said. 

SIM replacement procedures require that telcos exercise due diligence, NTC Director Edgardo Cabarios said in the same interview.

 

"That SIM is the person itself. When you ask for a replacement, there should be due diligence on the part of the telco to verify if the one asking for a replacement is the person itself," he said. 

 

He warned that SIM-swap scams can cause panic among consumers, especially if the perpetrators are not held accountable. 

 

"We are looking into this and... what should be done. We don’t want to scare anybody... We don’t want to affect electronic banking. We want to get back the trust," the NTC chief said. 

 

Cabarios noted the commission is in the process of drafting a rule that require telcos to implement stringent measures in client identity verification. 

 

He vowed to hold perpetrators liable, saying a fine will be imposed against them and that P200 a day is small. But negative publicity is a penalty that is more scary..." he said. – Kathrina Charmaine Alvarez/VS, GMA News