DICT now able to pin down text scammers, thanks to SIM registration
The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is cracking down on shady spam texters, thanks to mandatory SIM registration. As SIM registration ended on July 25, the department claims they can now identify spammers.
As first reported by Inquirer, DICT Secretary Ivan John Uy has urged the public to report any text scams they receive starting Wednesday, July 26.
“Mag-file na po kayo [ng complaint] at malalaman natin kung sino ang nagpadala niyan. Pwede nating [sampahan ng kaso o reklamo],” Uy said during an interview with DZBB.
(File the complaint, and we can identify who sent the spam text message. We can file a case or complaint.)
The National Telecommunications Commission’s (NTC) latest data shows that 61.94% of the total subscribers have registered their SIMs.
A SIM registration tent near PNR Sta. Mesa, Manila | Photo/ JM Chavaria
As of July 24, Smart Communications Inc. leads the way, with 49,201,007 registered SIMs accounting for 74.20% of total subscribers. Meanwhile, Globe Telecom Inc. and DITO Telecommunity Corp. registered 47,474,937 and 7,400,899 SIMs, respectively.
In a bid to combat electronic communication-aided crimes, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. enacted the Republic Act No. 11934 (also known as the SIM Registration Act) in October 2022.
The law mandates all mobile phone and data subscribers to register their SIMs with their respective telco providers. Failure to do so within the deadline will automatically deactivate the user’s SIM. However, the telco company provides a five-day grace period before permanently shutting down the user’s SIM.
The mandatory registration covers not only traditional SIM cards but also eSIMs, various other technologies, and future innovations used for SMS, voice, and data services. This means that subscribers must register even SIM cards used for data-only purposes, fixed wireless broadband, or IoT devices. The law also applies for postpaid subscribers.
If you haven’t registered your SIM yet, you can hit up these official landing pages:
SMART – smart.com.ph/simreg or simreg.smart.com.ph
GLOBE – new.globe.com.ph/simreg
DITO – https://dito.ph/sim-registration
