House starts hearing on SIM card registration

Lawmakers and telecommunications firms on Wednesday took another step toward finally stopping those annoying text scams that plague more than 80 million mobile phone users.

 

The House of Representatives Commmittee on Information and Communications Technology held a hearing to tackle a proposed measure to require mobile phone users to register their SIM cards, the small modules that identify a user on a mobile phone network, GMA News' Jamie Santos reported on "24 Oras."

 

Rizal Rep. Joey Roy Duavit, the committee chairman, said this was the period for debating the merits of the bill and proposing amendments.

 

Under the proposed measure, mobile phone owners must register their SIM cards—a move law enforcement agencies say would help them track down crimes or abuses using a particular SIM card.

 

The authorities believe this could finally deter text scams where scammers can pretend to be relatives of a victim and ask for load, or fool victims into texting a code that would transfer a certain amount to the scammers' phones.

 

Even President Benigno Aquino III has ordered authorities to take action against text scammers.

 

On the other hand, registering a SIM card could also deter crimes - such as using a disposable prepaid card in kidnapping, or even detonating an improvised bomb.

 

The lawmakers are also trying to avoid passing to consumers the cost of registration.

 

However, Wednesday's hearing also showed telecom firms are cooperating, with representatives of two major telecom firms in attendance.

 

The representatives said their respective companies have websites that give subscribers a chance to report spam or scam messages. —Joel Locsin/NB, GMA News