SENATORS unanimously passed on third and final reading the proposed SIM Card Registration Law, an awaited remedial legislation to effectively curb the proliferation of subscriber identity module (SIM) card used for fraudulent schemes.
Explaining her vote in favor of the measure, Senator Grace Poe pointed out that “at the core of this measure is the promotion of security in the country, stressing that “it is timely and fitting given that various technology-aided crimes are rampant in the country today.”
Embodied in Senate Bill No. 2395, the measure requires all public telecommunications entities to make the registration of all SIM cards a prerequisite to their sale, where subscribers need to submit a registration form and present a valid identification card.
Once enacted into law, it will also penalize the “use of fictitious identities to register SIM cards, spoofing, and the unauthorized sale of registered SIM cards.”
At the same time, the senator referenced the hacking incident last week where 700 accounts were breached, and an estimated total of P50 million in depositor funds was lost, as a call to urgently implement stronger security measures.
She affirmed that the remedial legislation was crafted to “establish another layer of security protection for Filipinos which will hopefully deter criminals from perpetrating their wicked plans,” at the same time stressing, “it is high time that we beef up our own infrastructures to address these threats to security.”
Moreover, Poe gave assurances that the remedial legislation was “crafted with the right to privacy of consumers held at the highest regard, and with the National Telecommunications Commission ensuring that the centralized SIM card registry is done in accordance with the Data Privacy Act.”
